British F1 Grand Prix 2015 Results: Winner, Standings, Highlights and Reaction

Home favourite Lewis Hamilton was the toast of Silverstone on Sunday afternoon, as the Mercedes star raced to victory in a thrilling British Grand Prix.

The Brit, who has now won his home race two years in a row, was too good for the rest of the field, recovering from a poor getaway to overhaul the fast-starting Williams pair of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas.

Lewis also had to withstand a late rally from team-mate Nico Rosberg, who finished second, as rain triggered a gripping finale at the iconic circuit. Sebastian Vettel also negotiated the tough conditions well, putting together some brilliant late laps to seize third spot.

Here are the full race results, courtesy of BBC Sport:

Position	Driver	Team	Race Time
1	HAM	Mercedes	1:31:27.729
2	ROS	Mercedes	1:31:38.685
3	VET	Ferrari	1:31:53.172
4	MAS	Williams	1:32:04.568
5	BOT	Williams	1:32:30.923
6	KVY	Red Bull	1:32:31.684
7	HUL	Force India	1:32:46.473
8	RAI	Ferrari	Lapped
9	PER	Force India	Lapped
10	ALO	McLaren	Lapped
11	ERI	Sauber	Lapped
12	MER	Manor	Lapped
13	STE	Manor	Lapped
R	SAI	Toro Rosso	Retired (32)
R	RIC	Red Bull	Retired (21)
R	VPN	Toro Rosso	Crashed (3)
R	MAL	Lotus	Retired (1)
R	GRO	Lotus	Retired (0)
R	NAS	Sauber	Retired (0)

Silverstone is renowned for being an entertaining circuit, but even by the British Grand Prix’s standards, this start was thrilling.

Clive Rose/Getty Images

Both Williams cars surged off the start line to initially overhaul the Mercedes duo, with Massa flying to the front. Hamilton was able to eventually get the better of Bottas to restore second, but some action further back in the field saw the safety car come out.

The Lotus pairing of Pastor Maldonado and Romain Grosjean both crashed out, as did home crowd favourite Jenson Button. Here’s a look at how the Brit’s McLaren ended up after his early tangle, per Sky Sports F1:

On the restart, an ambitious Hamilton looked to overhaul Massa immediately. But he overshot his attempted overtake, allowing Bottas to coast through into second place. Suddenly, despite all the talk of Mercedes dominance, Williams were in control of this race. 

Dan Istitene/Getty Images

Initially, the pair's engineers warned them off scrapping for first position, even though second place Bottas looked a lot quicker than the Brazilian. But then, as noted here by BBC’s Andrew Benson, the team’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds insisted he was happy let the duo go at it, even if it did make things a little nervy for the Williams garage:

With Massa, Bottas, Hamilton and Rosberg all within two seconds of each other at the front, the first round of pit stops were always going to be critical and the tactics made for intriguing viewing.

Clive Rose/Getty Images

The reigning world champion was the first man to blink, with Mercedes clearly looking to capitalise with an undercut. The very next lap Rosberg and Bottas were in, but Lewis put in a stunning out-lap, meaning when the aforementioned pair emerged from the pits, precariously side-by-side, Hamilton was in front. 

Massa was next in as he looked to overhaul the Mercedes man. But he could only slot in between Hamilton and Bottas in an extremely tight exit, leaving Rosberg down in fourth. 

For Valtteri, it was a big opportunity missed, as noted by Mike Gascoyne of MGI Consultancy:

Further back, there were more retirees. Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull was withdrawn with engine problems, while both Toro Rosso drivers, Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz, also had their races prematurely ended.

Dan Istitene/Getty Images

It was a breathless first half of the race, but things soon got even more dramatic, with engineers warning the drivers that rain was on the way to Silverstone. The sky was certainly looking a lot more moody, as we can see here courtesy of the Sauber team Twitter account:

In the 36th lap, the umbrellas started popping up, springing the pit lane into action. But there was only rain in some sections of the circuit, giving the team tacticians a massive decision to make: stick it out, or go with the intermediate tyres?

It allowed some of the drivers to showcase their quality in changeable conditions, especially Vettel, who leapfrogged his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen to take fifth.

Mark Thompson/Getty Images

Rosberg was a major benefactor too. First he did superbly to get past Bottas and into third, before diving down the inside of Massa on the very next lap to move up into second spot. The Mercedes man was absolutely flying, as noted here by F1 Racing on NBC:

Then, suddenly, Rosberg had eyes for the lead. He was reeling in Hamilton, who was struggling massively in the variable conditions, by seconds per sector and on Lap 42 with the German all over his mirrors, the Brit pitted, seemingly powerless to prevent his team-mate surging past and little left in his tyres.

Dan Istitene/Getty Images

But remarkably, the heavens opened with Lewis in the pits, prompting his engineers to put on the intermediate tyres. Meanwhile, Rosberg was on the wrong compound as the rain tumbled down, meaning Hamilton was able to reestablish his spot at the front in the space of one dramatic lap, as we can see here:

Meanwhile, Vettel had also made major strides during a frantic spell of racing, as more hesitancy from Williams saw the Ferrari star surge beyond both Massa and Bottas into a podium position.

Eventually, the rain did cease, allowing Hamilton to preserve his lead over the final laps and soak up the adulation of his home support. As noted by freelance sports writer Richard Laverty, it was a peculiar ending to a bewitching race:

Afterwards, Hamilton revealed the inspired decision to come in for a change of tyres late on was his, not the team's, per BBC Sport:

"

Thank you everyone for coming out today and making my weekend. I really wanted to do it for you guys. I am so thankful for all the support. I could see all the fans on every lap in the corner of my eye and they spurred me on.

My clutch was good, we had quite poor grip at the start, the same for Nico but it made the race more exciting. I just kept pushing. For the first time in my career I made the perfect choice tyre-wise.

"

Jon Super/Associated Press

The crucial thing for Hamilton is to consolidate this race victory with some subsequent strong displays. After triumphing in his home Grand Prix last season the momentum was drained from his world title chase after failing to win any of the next three races. Although Lewis recovered, it’s vital he extends his 17-point lead on Rosberg further at the Hungaroring and Spa in the next two races.

Nonetheless, this is a classic win that he’ll enjoy immensely. Not many drivers get the chance to sample glory in their home race and even less manage to achieve such a feat back-to-back. The enthralling manner in which he achieved the victory will make it all the more special.