Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2018 Results: Winner, Standings, Highlights, Reaction
November 11, 2018
Lewis Hamilton won the Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix at Interlagos in Sao Paolo on Sunday to help Mercedes wrap up the Constructors' Championship.
Hamilton, who started on pole after winning the drivers' championship last time out, benefited from a collision between Max Verstappen and Esteban Ocon after he had lost the lead to the former. Hamilton then held on for his 10th win of the season.
Verstappen finished second while Kimi Raikkonen rounded out the podium. Hamilton's team-mate Valtteri Bottas came fifth, which was enough to secure Mercedes an unassailable lead ahead of Ferrari with one race remaining.
Here's the classification for an eventful race:
A poor start for Sebastian Vettel saw him lose P2 to Bottas in the first corner after the German's Ferrari locked up.
Things quickly got worse for Vettel in the fourth lap, when he was overtaken by Verstappen and Ferrari team-mate Raikkonen in quick succession, leaving him in fifth place.
Further back, there was contact between Renault duo Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg, while Marcus Ericsson's Sauber sustained damage and he lost four places at the start after colliding with Romain Grosjean:
Ericsson was forced to retire in Lap 21. Despite a trip to the pits, his car evidently still had some problems brought on by the contact, leading to a spin off the track:
Meanwhile, Verstappen continued his excellent start by taking P2 from Bottas on Lap 10, beating him on the inside at the first turn.
After Hamilton changed to medium tyres in the pits, the Dutchman looked to build up a lead on the Mercedes man. Hamilton regained the lead when Verstappen pitted in Lap 36, but the Red Bull man had swapped to the quicker soft compound, and three laps later, he had overtaken the Englishman into P1.
Verstappen quickly set about pulling away from Hamilton and tried to lap Ocon, but the Frenchman's resistance to the idea proved costly:
Despite his increasingly worn out tyres, Hamilton was able to hang onto P1 for the remainder of the race ahead of Verstappen, who was hampered by the damage done to his car in the incident with Ocon.
Per F1 journalist Byron Young, Verstappen could scarcely contain his anger after the race:
Indeed, his frustration boiled over in a heated confrontation with Ocon:
The incident denied Verstappen his second win in a row and third of the season, which would be a personal best.
He'll have one last chance to do so in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 25.