USA F1 Grand Prix 2019 Results: Lewis Hamilton Clinches 6th Career Title

Lewis Hamilton sealed his sixth Formula One world title on Sunday while Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas won the USA Grand Prix.

Hamilton—who only needed to end the race in eighth—finished second at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen rounded out the podium places in third.

The Englishman has now won the drivers' championship for three years running, having previously been the victor in 2008, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018.

Bottas congratulated his team-mate on the championship, while Hamilton was ecstatic with his victory:

Hamilton, who started fifth on the grid, overtook both Ferraris in the opening lap to move up to third behind Bottas and Verstappen:

Vettel dropped to seventh in the first lap, and his day got worse when he was forced to retire on Lap 9 with a suspension issue:

Meanwhile, Red Bull's Alexander Albon had to claw his way up the field from last place after he was forced to pit following an early coming together with Carlos Sainz.

Hamilton took the lead in the 14th lap after Verstappen and then Bottas pitted, while he continued, pursuing a one-stop strategy.

He initially ignored a team order to pit himself in the 24th lap, but he did so in the following lap after being overtaken by Bottas.

The 34-year-old regained the lead on Lap 35 when Verstappen and Bottas hit the pits for a second time, at which point winning the race became a question of holding off the pair behind him on ever-degrading tyres.

Having steadily gained on him and been held off on Lap 51, Bottas eventually took the lead from his team-mate with four remaining:

Hamilton was able to hold off Verstappen over the final laps to keep second place, though.

The Silver Arrows driver is now just one short of Michael Schumacher's seven titles.