The four-time world champion led from start to finish, bar one lap following his pit stop, as he claimed his first win in France, his third this year and the 65th of his career
Lewis Hamilton celebrates on the podium yesterday. Pic/AFP
Lewis Hamilton roared to victory with a polished lights-to-flag drive for Mercedes in yesterday's restored French Grand Prix to regain top spot in the world championship.
ADVERTISEMENT
The four-time world champion led from start to finish, bar one lap following his pit stop, as he claimed his first win in France, his third this year and the 65th of his career. Hamilton came home seven seconds clear of Dutchman Max Verstappen with Kimi Raikkonen taking third for Ferrari after passing his Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo with five laps remaining.
Vettel crashes
Hamilton's consummate performance came after fellow four-time champion and pre-race leader Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari crashed into his Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas on the opening lap. Both suffered damage and, under an early Safety Car, limped to the pits for repairs. They rejoined from the back of the field to finish fifth and seventh respectively, either side of Kevin Magnussen of Haas, who was sixth. Vettel had to serve a five seconds penalty, which he took at his second pit stop. Carlos Sainz came home eighth for Renault, to the delight of the crowd, ahead of teammate Nico Hulkenberg and Charles Leclerc, who secured a point for Sauber with another impressive performance.
'Great work'
"Great work guys, great work everyone," said Hamilton, who had watched England defeat Panama 6-1 in the World Cup before the race.
Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever