NOW HE’S LEWIS HAMILTON
Lan-dmark victory for superstar
JUST when it seemed a young upstart would rain on Lewis Hamilton’s parade, the seven- time world champion got help from the heavens.
There were only five laps to race in Russia and Lando Norris was on the verge of a first Grand Prix victory to become the third youngest winner in history.
By the time those five laps were over, F1’s greatest gladiator had become the sport’s only centurion.
But make no mistake, Hamilton needed all his skill and racing intelligence, as well as a large slice of weather luck, to force his Mercedes past the McLaren driven by the 21-year- old from Bristol and onto the 100th chequered flag of his record-breaking 15-season career.
Norris held off the F1 giant lap after lap until the storm clouds blew in. He decided to risk the final five laps on slick tyres while Hamilton dived in for fresh boots to cope with the rain.
Career
Hamilton lost about 26 seconds in doing so but by the time he re- emerged, the rain was heavy and Norris was gently nudging his car round the track, unable to find traction.
That massive lead, along with his hopes of a richlydeserved victory, evaporated in two laps.
Hamilton, who started his F1 career in the McLaren in 2007 and won his first world title there in 2008, commiserated with Norris, even if his bad luck ultimately handed Hamilton hi s l andmark victory.
He said: “Lando did an amazing job, he had incredible pace. He’s doing a great job for McLaren. This was bittersweet. It’s nice to see my old team ahead.
“I want to start with thanking the fans. We have such a great crowd here. I know it’s not been the best of weather but what a race it provided!
“The team made such a good call at the end. I didn’t want to let Lando go. I’m incredibly grateful to all these men and women here and back in the factory. Wow, 100!”
And Hamilton revealed that he started the race hell-bent on making up for his own errors in qualifying on Saturday that left him down in fourth on the grid.
He said: “Going to bed last night, with the job that I did yesterday, there were subtle little mistakes. I was so determined to do the best job I could. It was tough.”
Norris will have plenty of success to come in his career but the heartbreak of having the weather snatch a famous win from his grasp was clear to see.
Unhappy
“I don’t know where to start,” he said. “I’m unhappy, devastated in a way.
“We made a call to stay out and we stand by that. It was the wrong one but I made the decision just as much as the team.
“It was more that they thought I should box and I decided to stay out. It was my decision, I thought it was the way to go.
“I had the confidence beforehand that I was capable of leading a race and I’ve felt capable of doing that for a while. So I don’t think that’s really changed. It’s just a bit of heartbreak.”
Grid
Max Verstappen started from the back of the grid as a (GB) (Hol) (Spa) (Aus) (Fin) (Spa) (GB) (Fin) (Mex)
(GB) penalty for using a fourth engine this season but finished second to make sure Hamilton’s lead is only two points in the championship.
He said: “With the penalty we had, to only lose one spot is definitely not too bad. When I woke up this morning I definitely didn’t expect this
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