Formula 1 - Season 3 / Year 2018

Post race interviews:

"As a driver, of course the win is what you are looking for. When Seb went off, I thought there was a good chance. But, taking positives, as a team it's the perfect result for us - in Germany, our home grand prix - so that's very good" -Valtteri Bottas

"It's obviously highly unlikely from that position - but you've always got to believe. The team did a fantastic job today. I'm so grateful. Hopefully this solidifies the belief. For those who don't know me, now they do"

-Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton took a thrilling and controversial victory in the Italian Grand Prix following a first-lap clash with title rival Sebastian Vettel.

The Mercedes driver fought a cat-and-mouse battle with Vettel's team-mate Kimi Raikkonen throughout the race and eventually passed him around the outside of the first corner with nine laps to go.

Hamilton and Mercedes not only dashed Ferrari's hopes of a home win after their first front-row lock-out at Monza for 18 years but also extended the Briton's championship lead over Vettel, who finished fourth, to 30 points.

That is more than a clear win, with seven races and a total of 175 points remaining in the season.

It could not have come at a better time for Hamilton, who is facing a fight against an apparently faster car - at least in qualifying - and with Mercedes' bogey track, Singapore, next on the schedule.

Austin, October 20, 2018 – Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton will start the United States Grand Prix from pole position: one of four drivers in the top 10 of the grid (along with his team mate Valtteri Bottas, Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo) who will begin the race on the supersoft tyre. Hamilton's ninth pole of the season means that he will end the year with more poles than anyone else, claiming the overall 2018 Pirelli Pole Position Award.

Kimi Raikkonen has won the Formula One United States Grand Prix, his first win in over 100 races. It was a very intense battle between Raikkonen of Ferrari, Max Verstappen of Red Bull and Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes. It was Raikkonen's first win in 113 races, the longest gap between race wins in F1 history.

By finishing third, and with Sebastian Vettel finishing in fourth, Hamilton was unable to secure the Drivers' Championship on Sunday. He is going for his fifth title, and wants to be just the third man ever to do so, but he failed to clinch on Sunday.

Hamilton will still have a golden opportunity to win his fifth title in the next race, as three remain on the schedule.

On the opening lap, there were multiple incidents. Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo came together, which spun Vettel out and put him near the back of the pack. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll connected, ending Alonso's race and making him the first casualty on Sunday. Romain Grosjean also ran into Charles Leclerc, ending the former's race while the latter had to pit, along with Stroll.

Ricciardo wound up stopping not long after that, his engine seemingly cutting out. That made him the third driver to retire from the race, a huge disappointment after he was scrapping with the top of the field.

As far as the front-runners go, Vettel would eventually make his way to near the front of the pack, while Ricciardo's stop prompted a virtual safety car. Hamilton was instructed to pit opposite Raikkonen, and though the Ferrari tried to fake the Mercedes, he remained out. Hamilton pit early, and gained about eight seconds as a result. He wound up passing Raikkonen, and after the Ferrari stopped a few laps later, Hamilton had a 17-second lead but questions about whether or not he will be doing a two-stop strategy.

Hamilton, Raikkonen, Verstappen and Bottas were the top four after the first round of pit stops. The race came down to the final laps, and Vettel helped save his title hopes — for at least another race — by passing Bottas in the penultimate lap. Hamilton got close to Verstappen, and second place would have given him the title, but in the very final laps, Verstappen managed to stay ahead.

Leclerc wound up being the fourth driver to retire from the race on Lap 33, likely due to damage sustained early in the race. It's his second consecutive retirement.

Steve Jones and David Coulthard present highlights of Qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel secured pole position here last year and, with only three races remaining this season, he'll want to give Ferrari some more to celebrate.

Steve Jones and David Coulthard present highlights from the Mexican Grand Prix. The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is known for its amazing stadium and atmosphere, so an exciting race is in prospect for drivers and viewers alike.

PS: Lewis Hamilton becomes the 2018 world champion and a 5 time world champion at the Mexican gp, equals Schumacher and Fangio to be the 3rd ever driver to get 5 titles.

A well deserved world champion.

Steve Jones presents highlights of Qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix. Valtteri Bottas took pole here last year and would love to do the same again this weekend to give himself a shot at his first win of the season.

Steve Jones and David Coulthard present highlights from the Brazilian Grand Prix in São Paulo. Lewis Hamilton returns to the track where he won his first championship 10 years ago as a newly crowned five-time World Champion and, although the title may be decided, Interlagos is a track that never fails to deliver and there's plenty left to drive for.