F1: Lewis Hamilton Does Not Mind Waiting For Title After Mexico GP Win
Lewis Hamilton said he doesn't mind that he'll have to wait another week to wrap up the drivers' championship after securing a superb victory in Mexico Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Mexican win was Hamilton's 10th of the season, 83rd overall in his career and that also marked 100th for Mercedes as a constructor.
The triumph on Sunday meant, Hamilton now has stretched his lead over teammate Valtteri Bottas, who finished P3 in Mexico, 74 points. Now Hamilton's title race is a mere formality as he will definitely be crowned world champion, for the sixth time, in Texas next weekend.
"We came here thinking we were on the back foot, knowing it was a difficult race for us, but we pulled through. I don't mind [not taking the title in Mexico]," Hamilton, who had not finished on the podium in Mexico since 2016, added.
"I had quite a bit of damage on my car so the race was quite a bit of a struggle," Hamilton said, referring to an opening lap clash with Red Bull's Max Verstappen that he described as hair-raising.
For denying Hamilton the title in the US Grand Prix, Bottas now has to win in Austin with the fastest lap, and hope for Hamilton to finish out of top 8. Bottas, who started sixth after a lengthy car rebuild following a Q3 breakdown, said after the race, that he could not have done much more to stop Hamilton. In the end, it was all about tyre management.
"I enjoyed it, considering yesterday. It's a good result," Bottas added.
Meanwhile, the Ferraris, who were expected to do well in Mexico, had a P2 and P4 finish with Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel taking the respective positions.
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