Lewis Hamilton won a dramatic Russian Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday to take a huge step towards his third world championship after Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg retired early on with throttle failure.
The win was Hamilton’s ninth of the season, and the 42nd of his career, and the Briton’s untroubled afternoon was a stark contrast to his German team-mate’s woes.
Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel finished runner-up at the Olympic Park circuit to overtake Rosberg as Hamilton’s closest rival, 66 points adrift of the Briton with four races and a maximum 100 points remaining.
If results go Hamilton’s way, he can secure his second successive title in Austin, USA, in two weeks’ time.
Mexican Sergio Perez finished third for Force India, in a race with two safety car interludes following crashes, after Finnish drivers Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen collided while battling for the final podium place.
Raikkonen finished fifth for Ferrari but after a subsequent stewards’ enquiry was demoted to eighth to hand Mercedes its second consecutive constructors’ title with four races to spare.
The results:
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 37min 11.024sec, 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) + 5.953s, 3. Sergio Perez (Force India) 28.918, 4. Felipe Massa (Williams) 38.831, 5. Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull) 47.566, 6. Felipe Nasr (Sauber AG) 56.508, 7. Pastor Maldonado (Lotus) 1:01.088, 8. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) 1:12.358, 9. Jenson Button (McLaren) 1:19.467, 10. Fernando Alonso (McLaren) 1:26.210, 11. Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso) 1:28.424, 12. Valtteri Bottas (Williams) 1 lap, 13. Roberto Merhi (Marussia) 1 lap, 14. Will Stevens (Marussia) 2 laps, 15. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/Red Bull) 6 laps.
Retirements: Marcus Ericsson (Sauber) 1st lap, Nico Hulkenberg (Force India) 1st lap, Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 8th lap, Romain Grosjean (Lotus) 12th lap, Carlos Sainz Jr (Toro Rosso) 47th lap, Ricciardo 48th lap (classified), Bottas 53rd lap (classified).
Championship standings: Drivers: 1. Hamilton 302.0 points, 2. Vettel 236.0, 3. Rosberg 229.0, 4. Raikkonen 123.0, 5. Bottas 111.0, 6. Massa 109.0, 7. Kvyat 74.0, 8. Ricciardo 73.0, 9. Perez 54.0, 10. Grosjean 44.0, 11. Hulkenberg 38.0, 12. Verstappen 32.0, 13. Nasr 23.0, 14. Maldonado 20.0, 15. Alonso 12.0, 16. Sainz Jr 12.0, 17. Ericsson 9.0, 18. Button 8.0.
Constructors: 1. Mercedes 531.0 points (champion), 2. Ferrari 359.0, 3. Williams 220.0, 4. Red Bull 147.0, 5. Force India 92.0, 6. Lotus 64.0, 7. Toro Rosso 44.0, 8. Sauber AG 32.0, 9. McLaren 20.0.
