Hamilton looks for 7th title in İstanbul
LEWIS Hamilton’s seventh world championship is a matter of when, not if, and his first chance to clinch it will be at this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix.
Hamilton leads Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas by 85 points with four races remaining — that’s a total of 104 points to play for.
F1’s points are awarded to the top 10 finishers as such: 25 - 18 - 15 - 12 - 10 - 8 - 6- 4 - 2 - 1. An extra point is awarded to whoever sets the fastest lap of the race, provided they also finish in the top 10.
The title will continue what has been a historic season for Hamilton. He claimed his 92nd victory at the Portuguese Grand Prix, beating the previous benchmark of 91 set by Michael Schumacher. A seventh world championship will see him move level with Schumacher in that category.
The permutations for Hamilton at the İstanbul race are straightforward. If he finishes ahead of Bottas, in any position, he will clinch it.
If Bottas finishes ahead of Hamilton, he must outscore him by eight points to take the championship fight to Bahrain at the end of November.
If Bottas wins the race and claims the fastest lap (26 points), the title fight will continue for another race as the maximum Hamilton could score in this scenario is 18.
If Bottas wins the race without the fastest lap (25 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is second (18 points).
If Bottas is second without the fastest lap (18 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least fourth (12 points), or fifth with the fastest lap (11 points).
If Bottas is third with the fastest lap (16 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least fifth (10 points).
If Bottas is third without the fastest lap (15 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least sixth (8 points). He would not need the fastest lap point.
If Bottas is fourth with the fastest lap (13 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least seventh (6 points).
If Bottas is fourth without the fastest lap (12 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least eighth with the fastest lap (5 points).
If Bottas is fifth with the fastest lap (11 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least eighth (4 points).
If Bottas is fifth without the fastest lap (10 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least ninth with the fastest lap (3
points).
If Bottas is sixth with the fastest lap, (9 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least ninth (2 points).
If Bottas is sixth without the fastest lap (8 points), Hamilton will be champion if he is at least 10th (1 point).
Bottas cannot keep the title fight alive if he finishes seventh or lower, regardless of where Hamilton finishes.