Vettel edges out Hamilton for 2018 Formula 1 British Grand Prix win
Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel extended his lead in the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship by earning a hard-fought win on Sunday in the British Grand Prix.
Mercedes-AMG's Lewis Hamilton claimed second spot approximately 2.2 seconds behind Vettel, while Ferrari's other man Kimi Räikkönen claimed third spot some 3.6 seconds after the winner.
Things started off with Hamilton on pole and looking on track for a sixth-straight win at the Silverstone Circuit. However, it was not to be thanks to some bad luck.
After suffering wheelspin at the start, Hamilton was passed by both Vettel and teammate Valtteri Bottas. Räikkönen also tried to get the jump on Hamilton but his wheels locked up and he ended up driving into the rear of the reigning champ's car.
This caused Hamilton to enter a spin but the local hero was able to rejoin the race, albeit at 18th spot. This was the setting for an epic charge up the order. Hamilton was already approaching fifth spot after just 10 laps, but was still some 30 seconds behind the leader Vettel.
Mercedes looked like it might have a chance at claiming a win when with 20 laps to go, Sauber's Marcus Ericsson crashed into the barriers at the first corner and the safety car came out. Ferrari pulled off a double pit stop, switching back to softs, but the Hamilton and Bottas stayed out, so that behind the safety car it was Bottas in the lead, providing some hindrance for Vettel.
At first it looked like the strategy might work as Hamilton was able to close the gap, but soon there was another crash, this time involving Renault's Carlos Sainz and Haas' Romain Grosjean. So once again the safety car appeared, coming back in with ten laps remaining.
Then, on lap 47, Vettel concealed his move to the very last moment and dived inside Bottas at turn 6. Hamilton, and then Räikkönen, also passed Bottas to seal the podium spots. Bottas would claim fourth with Red Bull Racing's Daniel Ricciardo claiming fifth.
Vettel's lead tally in the 2018 Drivers' Championship is now up to 171 points with Hamilton in second on 163 points and Räikkönen moving into third with 116 points. In the Constructors' Championship, Ferrari leads with 287 points followed by Mercedes with 267 points and Red Bull with 199 points. The next race on the calendar is the German Grand Prix in a fortnight.
Hit the next page for the full results from the 2018 Formula 1 British Grand Prix.
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