EMOTIONAL VICTORY
Hamilton maintains poise to defend his championship.
Lewis Hamilton was trying not to allow his emotions of winning the world championship get the better of him when it was so essential to keep his superb racing instincts sharp and astute.
The Formula One star needed to finish ahead of Nico Rosberg, his Mercedes teammate, and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel to clinch the world championship at Sunday’s rain-soaked U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. With conditions evolving from sopping wet to relatively dry throughout the twohour race, each driver had to rely on every skill in his repertoire.
“My emotions were just up and down through the race,” Hamilton said. “I was struggling ... sliding all over the place. The world championship was right there. ... It was so close I could smell it.
On turn 12 of lap 48, Hamilton took advantage as Rosberg inexplicably drifted into the grass. Rosberg couldn’t correct the car before Hamilton zoomed past.
“I’m not saying something was wrong with the car,” said Rosberg, who added that he’s never suffered such a lapse before. “For now, I think it’s a mistake I made. It was really tough for me at the time to lose the lead like that.”
Hamilton maintained his lead through the final eight laps to beat Rosberg by 2.85 seconds. Vettel, who started 14th on the grid because of a prerace engine penalty, was 3.38 behind Hamilton.
It was Hamilton’s second straight world championship and third overall. He also successfully defended his U.S. Grand Prix crown. On race radio, he told the Mercedes team “This is the greatest moment of my life. ... To my family, I love you all.”
After he got out of his car, Hamilton was swamped with emotion. Head down, he crouched beside his car for several seconds. He said he thought back to when he won his first British title and how he and his dad drove home, singing “We are the Champions.”
With vigor, Hamilton stood atop the winner’s podium and drank champagne from his new trophy. Pop star Elton John congratulated him and invited Hamilton to his concert later in the evening. Vettel, a four-time world champion, urged Hamilton to be generous and buy lots of drinks before everyone left Austin.
It had been a stressful three days for all drivers. Rain washed out one of Friday’s practice sessions. Storms forced Formula One officials to delay Saturday’s qualifying five times, before they rescheduled it for Sunday morning.
It was the first time in two years there was a qualifier on the same day as the race. Because of the slick conditions, the qualifier was trimmed from three sessions to two. Rosberg posted the fastest lap time, with Hamilton in second.
The afternoon race featured three different leaders. Australian Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull led midway through the race when drivers were using tires for wet conditions. Once the circuit dried, the powerful Mercedes engines were dominant.
“It was an extraordinary race,” Hamilton said.