Lewis Hamilton wins controversial Brazilian Grand Prix after Max Verstappen was spun off the circuit by lapped Esteban Ocon while leading at Interlagos
- Lewis Hamilton’s victory for Mercedes ensured team took fifth straight Constructors’ championship
- Max Verstappen was on course for win until Esteban Ocon drove into Dutchman causing both to spin
- Controversial incident allowed Hamilton to retake lead and go on to narrowly take win in front of Dutchman
Max Verstappen called Esteban Ocon a ‘f****** idiot’ after the reckless Force India driver cost him a fine victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The pair collided 43 laps into the 71-lap race at Interlagos, with Ocon needlessly trying to race Verstappen while being lapped. Verstappen was then the leader. Ocon was the fool.
They came together at the Senna Esses and Verstappen spun off, ceding his place to Lewis Hamilton, who went on to win his 10th race of the season – the perfect celebration of the fifth world title he won in Mexico a fortnight ago.
Lewis Hamilton took victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix to help Mercedes clinch the constructors’ championship
Lewis Hamilton leaps from his car in parc ferme after winning the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos
That championship victory turned Sunday’s race into a dead rubber of sorts – certainly the weekend had a certain after-the- Lord-Mayor’s-Show feel about it – though there was the business of the constructors’ title to wrap up. Mercedes did that with Hamilton’s victory and team-mate Valtteri Bottas fifth.
New kitchens all round at Brackley! Five times in as many years, Mercedes have handed out bonuses that come with the team title.
But there was no celebration for Verstappen, who was chasing his second successive victory. He was full of elan throughout the afternoon, carving his way up the field from fifth on the grid. He had a fast Red Bull but put it to emphatically good use.
Hamilton bows down to his car after helping Mercedes clinch their fifth constructors’ championship at Interlagos
Hamilton makes his way towards his team having triumphed in a thrilling race at the Sao Paulo circuit
Third placed driver Kimi Raikkonen looks on as Hamilton celebrates victory on the podium with dancers
Past Kimi Raikkonen, Sebastian Vettel and then Valtteri Bottas – all early on.
After pitting, he came out behind Hamilton but passed him easily enough down the straight for the lead.
Then, the collision with Ocon, who drove into the side of Verstappen. Should Verstappen have taken more care? Perhaps, but he was entitled to greater circumspection from a driver so far down the field – 16th of the 18 runners at the time.
Hamilton retook the lead in Sao Paulo after Versttapen was taken out by Esteban Ocon (not pictured)
BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX RESULTS AND STANDINGS
RACE RESULT:
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes 1hr 27mins 09.066secs
2 Max Verstappen (Hol) Red Bull 1:27:10.535
3 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:27:13.830
4 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:27:14.259
5 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes 1:27:32.009
6 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:27:36.063
7 Charles Leclerc (Mon) Sauber 1:27:53.265
8 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas 1:28:00.296
9 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas 1:28:01.923
10 Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India at 1 Lap
11 Brendon Hartley (Nzl) Toro Rosso at 1 Lap
12 Carlos Sainz (Spa) Renault at 1 Lap
13 Pierre Gasly (Fra) Toro Rosso at 1 Lap
14 Stoffel Vandoorne (Bel) McLaren at 1 Lap
15 Esteban Ocon (Fra) Force India at 1 Lap
16 Sergey Sirotkin (Rus) Williams at 2 Laps
17 Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren at 2 Laps
18 Lance Stroll (Can) Williams at 2 Laps
Not Classified: 19 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 32 Laps completed, 20 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber-Ferrari 20 Laps completed
Fastest Lap: Valtteri Bottas 1min 10.540secs on Lap 65
DRIVERS’ STANDINGS:
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes 383pts
2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 302
3 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 251
4 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes 237
5 Max Verstappen (Hol) Red Bull 234
6 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 158
7 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 69
8 Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 58
9 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas 55
10 Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren 50
11 Esteban Ocon (Fra) Force India 49
12 Carlos Sainz (Spa) Renault 45
13 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas 35
14 Charles Leclerc (Mon) Sauber 33
15 Pierre Gasly (Fra) Toro Rosso 29
16 Stoffel Vandoorne (Bel) McLaren 12
17 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber 9
18 Lance Stroll (Can) Williams 6
19 Brendon Hartley (Nzl) Toro Rosso 4
20 Sergey Sirotkin (Rus) Williams 1
Constructors’ championship: 1 Mercedes 620pts, 2 Ferrari 553, 3 Red Bull 392, 4 Renault 114, 5 Haas 90, 6 McLaren 62, 7 Force India 48, 8 Sauber 42, 9 Toro Rosso 33, 10 Williams 7
F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton led from the front at the Brazilian Grand Prix and clinched yet another victory
‘What a f****** idiot,’ raged Verstappen over the radio. His boss Christian Horner waved his arms angrily on the pit wall. Verstappen was now five seconds down on Hamilton and nursing a bruised car. He finished second with Ferrari’s Raikkonen third.
The stewards looked into Verstappen-Ocon incident and gave the Frenchman a severe hit – a 10-second stop-go penalty, only one level down from putting out the scaffolding by waving a black flag at him.
Ocon, 22, is on Mercedes’ books, part of their young driver programme. A conspiracy theorist might suggest he was helping a fellow Mercedes man, Hamilton, and acted deliberately.
Perhaps, but it seems a bit grassy knoll to me. I put it down to simple idiocy.
It was the first time Hamilton, who had started on pole, has won a race in the same season after winning a championship. It was his second win here at Interlagos, the track on which he invaded the awareness of the wider world with his last-corner title sorcery a decade ago.
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