Lewis Hamilton thanked his Mercedes team for believing in him after charging to victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The pitwall got the call right to stop the Briton for a second time for medium tyres as he caught and passed Max Verstappen in the final 20 laps in Budapest to secure an eighth win of the season.

Even Hamilton himself apologised to chief strategist James Vowles on the radio after being initially sceptical of the decision and later praised their commitment.

“I feel really grateful for the day and for the team who continue to believe in me. To take a risk, take a chance on me,” he said.

“We've been together seven years and it never gets old. It feels like a new win for us.

“If it wasn't for these boys and the guys back at the factory this wouldn't be possible. For a race, to be able to push like that. I was on the limit all the way.”

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Indeed, Hamilton would go on to explain some of the challenges he faced during the race and believes the achievement would have certainly got the approval of former non-executive chairman Niki Lauda.

“We had brake problems all weekend, and I was a bit worried, but we made the changes and I was actually doing a lot of lift and coast for half a lap, but I was just trying to save as much as I could," he said to Sky Sports.

“It was difficult to get by, the defence was great and I didn’t know if I could catch that 19-second gap. I just kept my head down, and each lap was like a qualifying lap.

“I know if Niki [Lauda] was here today, he would take his hat off.”