LEWIS HAMILTON has warned championship leader Max Verstappen he will be back to fighting for race victories after the summer break.
The seven-time World Champion finished second behind the Dutchman at Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Verstappen produced a magnificent drive to win the race from 10th thanks in part to another Ferrari strategy mishap.
But Hamilton, who also finished the race with the fastest lap, vowed to be back fighting the championship front-runners on the other side of the summer break.
He told Sky Sports after the race: "I was definitely struggling at the beginning but bit by bit I got more comfortable with the balance.
"I had a really good start so I want to acknowledge my team. We've had a tough year and for both cars to be on the podium is an amazing way to go into the break.
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Verstappen wins Hungarian GP from 10th with Hamilton SECOND and Russell third
"The other guys have an edge but we are clearly closing the gap. Hopefully we can bring some more into the second half of the season and start fighting with them."
A DRS issue during Saturday's qualifying meant Hamilton could achieve no higher than P7 as a starting spot on the grid.
And Hamilton believed if the weather had taken a turn for the worse during the races dying moments he could have pipped the Red Bull driver on the line.
Mercedes team-mate George Russell, who got pole in qualifying, completed the podium trio and joined Hamilton in praising the team's progress since a stuttering start to the season for them.
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Verstappen wins Hungarian GP from 10th with Hamilton SECOND and Russell third
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He said: "When it started spitting at the beginning and we were on the soft tyres I thought we were on.
"We had a strong start it was a good first stint, and then towards the end on the mediums I really struggled and loosing a bit of temperate.
"Again, an amazing job by the team in pole position yesterday, double podium, we are definitely making progress so really proud of the work everyone has done.
"I think it's been incredibly intense start to the season I think a break will do everyone some good."
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Heading into the season break, Verstappen has collected eight race wins and lead's Ferrari's Charles Leclerc by 80 points.
Russell and Hamilton have closed the gap to the front-runners, with Russell now sitting fourth in the driver standings and Hamilton now just 10 points behind Carlos Sainz.
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