The next phase of the race entered a brief calm period, which lasted until lap 35.
In this lap, Hamilton's strategy team realized that by staying behind Qin Miao, Hamilton could at most secure a third place in this race.
Although getting on the podium is indeed nice, neither the seven-time champion himself nor Hamilton's strategy team was satisfied — they wanted a race victory in this event.
Therefore, Hamilton proactively sought change and went for a second pit stop on lap 35 to change tires, putting on a brand new set of medium tires.
After Hamilton pitted, Verstappen guessed Hamilton's intention; he wanted to undercut both him and Qin Miao.
As for Qin Miao's specific thoughts at this moment, Verstappen and the Red Bull strategy team didn't care, but Verstappen certainly wouldn't sit idly by.
Thus, Verstappen on the track began to accelerate.
Qin Miao also knew he needed two pit stops, and similarly began to speed up to prevent an overtake by his teammate.
