Lewis Hamilton has become the second most successful driver in Formula One history, after winning his sixth title.
A second-place finish at the United States Grand Prix was all that was required for Lewis Hamilton to win his sixth Formula One world title, putting him only one behind Michael Schumacher.
His teammate Valtteri Bottas had to win the race to stand any chance of denying the Brit the famous title win, and he did what he needed but with Hamilton scoring more than four points, the lead is now unassailable.
Following a disappointing qualifying of only fifth, a result he claimed was his ‘worst for a while’, Hamilton needed to make up positions quickly from the start and he did just that, disposing of the slow starting Ferrari’s on lap one.
The race was another strategic game of chess between the teams, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen challenging the leader Valtteri Bottas; forcing Mercedes to split strategies; Bottas on a two-stop with Hamilton on an ambitious one-stop.
Hamilton fended off his Finnish teammate until lap 52 and managed to keep second place from the pouncing Max Verstappen with the help of a yellow flag after Kevin Magnussen’s brake failure on the back straight.
Meanwhile, Ferrari had a belated Halloween horror show as both drivers made terrible starts, with Sebastian Vettel dropping behind Lando Norris’ McLaren and Daniel Ricciardo’s Renault before retiring through suspension failure on lap seven.
The evening wasn’t any better for his Monegasque teammate Charles Leclerc who finished 52 seconds behind the leader, the type of form unheard of in this renaissance for the prancing horse since the Summer break.
There was more last lap drama for Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat who was penalised for a dangerous manoeuvre for the second time in a week, this time on Racing Point’s Sergio Perez, who secured tenth place and one point after starting from the pit lane.
Full Race Result
| Pos | # | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Gap |
| 1 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 56 | 1hr 33 55.653s |
| 2 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 56 | 4.148 |
| 3 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 56 | 5.002 |
| 4 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 56 | 52.239 |
| 5 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Red Bull | 56 | 78.038 |
| 6 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Renault | 56 | 90.366 |
| 7 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 56 | 90.764 |
| 8 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | McLaren | 55 | 1 lap |
| 9 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 55 | 1 lap |
| 10 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point | 55 | 1 lap |
| 11 | 7 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | 55 | 1 lap |
| 12 | 26 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso | 55 | 1 lap |
| 13 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Racing Point | 55 | 1 lap |
| 14 | 99 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | 55 | 1 lap |
| 15 | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | 55 | 1 lap |
| 16 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | 54 | 2 laps |
| 17 | 63 | George Russell | Williams | 54 | 2 laps |
| 18 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 52 | 4 laps |
| 19 | 88 | Robert Kubica | Williams | DNF | DNF |
| 20 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | DNF | DNF |
The next race is Round 20 in Brazil, 22-24 November.
By Lewis Brumby
Photo Credit: F1.com