Lewis Hamilton has sent a warning to Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari that he's only just getting started after claiming victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Briton led 54 of the 70 laps at the Hungaroring but in reality, he was unchallenged after pulling away from teammate Valtteri Bottas in the opening stint and the Scuderia shot themselves in the foot trying to catch up.

It marks Hamilton's sixth victory in Budapest, which extends the record he already held for most wins at this race, and was also a significant blow to Vettel and Ferrari at a race they had looked like dominating before rain turned the competitive order on its head in qualifying.

 

Still, to finish the job brought the ultimate satisfaction to the 33-year-old, who admitted his surprise at the now 24-point gap he holds over his nearest rival in the Drivers' Championship.

"I really could only have dreamed that we would be in the position that we are in right now," he claimed.

"Considering all factors and based on our pure performance, where we stand compared to the Ferraris.

"Really happy, going into the break, particularly with back-to-back wins. I think that boost will last a long time for our team and it’s encouraging for everyone so I’m excited for the break."

To achieve the win at what is considered one of Mercedes' weaker tracks, despite having now won three times in Hungary with the Brackley-based team, was also a welcome gift for Hamilton.

“We came here knowing that the Ferraris would be real quick this weekend," he stated. "To come out with these points, we will definitely take as a bonus for us.

"Today I had them covered, but had they been on pole, we would have struggled," he admitted.

"So we've got some improvements to make in our overall package to try and close the gap to them."

This time last year, it was Vettel that had the lead over Lewis entering the summer break before the pendulum swung firmly in the latter's favour with wins at Spa, Monza and Singapore.

In theory this year, given the Italian team's advantage on power and high downforce circuits, all three should favour the German and give him the chance to fight back.

Hamilton though knows exactly what he needs to do.

"We need to apply more pressure in the second half. This is where we need to turn up the heat," he said.

"So we will go away and prepare and make sure we come back stronger.

"We've definitely had ups and downs in this championship, it's such a roller coaster ride," he added. "We're in a great position right now, but what's important is that we don't drop the ball."