It was anything but a runaway win for Lewis Hamilton, but he won nonetheless, conserving his tires to win at the end. Vettel finished second, while Bottas in the second Mercedes took third.
MEXICO CITY, Mexico— October 27th–Lewis Hamilton was running out of tire wear with just a few laps to go at Sunday’s Mexican Grand Prix. But the Briton conserved rubber well enough to take his 83rd career win. In winning, Hamilton finished just under two seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas, finished third.
Hamilton’s victory didn’t clinch his sixth world title but, with a good enough performance next week, he can win it at the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. To do that, he needs to outperform Bottas by just four points.
Lewis Hamilton: Today is an incredible result. I have to say a huge thanks to my team–the guys that continue to work incredibly hard and stay focused. I kept my head down, and it felt like a long second stint.
The fact of the matter is that Hamilton did not get a good start. He fell back from third to fifth and only took the lead with 12 laps left to go. Toward the end, Vettel, Bottas, and Charles Leclerc–those in the chase–were only six seconds between the leader and fourth place.
Vettel summarized Hamilton’s win this way. “Surprisingly, the hard tire worked well, and I think Lewis was just cruising in the second stint,” he said. Bottas, on the other hand, was elated to finish where he did–considering his crash during Saturday’s qualifying round. “I enjoyed it considering yesterday,” a relieved Bottas said afterward. “I have the pace and confidence, and I need to continue. I look forward to next weekend,” he concluded
Two cars (of 22 in the race) had to retire, including Lando Norris, who suffered from a botched pit stop when a left rear tire was not installed correctly. Norris could not catch up with the rest of the grid and eventually stopped at Lap 52. Kimi Raikkonen retired with 11 laps to go. It was the Finn’s second retirement in the last four races.
Polesitter Leclerc ended up fourth, while Alex Albon had the best finish of his career in fifth. That finish gives Albon a better chance of remaining with Red Bull next season.
But Albon’s good luck was Max Verstappen’s bad. On Saturday, a penalty dropped him to fourth on the grid from the pole he thought he had won. Then on Sunday, Verstappen was hit by Bottas at the start, which punctured his rear right tire. Verstappen recovered well enough to finish behind teammate Albon in sixth.
Sergio Perez gave home fans something to cheer about taking seventh, while Daniel Riccardo finished eighth. Pierre Gasly was ninth for Toro Rosso, while Nico Hulkenberg grabbed tenth. Those finishes gave Renault double points thanks to a penalty by Dani Kvyat. When the Russian tried to pass Hulkenberg’s car, he struck it at the stadium section when the German was ahead of him. The result took Hulkenberg into the barriers on the final lap.
But on this day, the biggest hi-fives were reserved for Hamilton. No, he didn’t clinch the world title in Mexico City, but that didn’t seem to phase him.
The truth is: it’s only a matter of time before Hamilton wears that crown … again.
