- Mercedes brought their delayed engine upgrade to France, complete with “added goodness” and Lewis Hamilton took full advantage on Sunday, converting pole position into a commanding victory in the returning French Grand Prix as his chief title rival Sebastian Vettel made life hard for himself.
Hamilton was back to his brilliant best in qualifying and proceeded to dominate the race, crossing the line seven seconds ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen completing the podium. With Vettel finishing down in fifth, Hamilton convincingly reclaimed the lead in the drivers’ standings. The world champion avoided the chaos that unravelled behind him at the start, with Vettel locking up and sliding into Valtteri Bottas, spinning the Finn's Mercedes and puncturing his tyre while breaking his own front wing. There were groans in the grandstands as further back, Pierre Gasly got out of shape and clattered into fellow Frenchman Esteban Ocon, forcing both out on the spot.
Las tablas
Drivers
| 1 |
Lewis Hamilton |
Mercedes |
145 pts |
| 2 |
Sebastian Vettel |
Ferrari |
131 pts |
| 3 |
Daniel Ricciardo |
Red Bull |
96 pts |
| 4 |
Valterri Botas |
Mercedes |
92 pts |
| 5 |
Kimi Raikkonen |
Ferrari |
83 pts |
| 6 |
Max Verstappen |
Red Bull |
68 pts |
| 7 |
Nico Hulkenberg |
Renault |
34 pts |
| 8 |
Fernando Alonso |
McLaren |
32 pts |
| 9 |
Carlos Sainz |
Renault |
28 pts |
| 10 |
Kevin Magnussen |
Haas |
27 pts |
Teams
| 1 |
Mercedes |
237 pts |
| 2 |
Ferrari |
214 pts |
| 3 |
Red Bull |
164 pts |
| 4 |
Renault |
62 pts |
| 5 |
McLaren |
40 pts |
