|
Race Start - Hamilton keeps the lead ahead of Valtteri Bottas in
a Mercedes one-two, Verstappen slots into third.
Lap 10 - Mick Schumacher crashes heavily in his Haas at Turn 23,
safety car deployed. Hamilton and Bottas are among the drivers
to pit under the safety car. Verstappen stays out, and inherits
the race lead.
L14 - Red flag is thrown out to halt the race so repairs can be
carried out to the Turn 23 barriers. This plays into
Verstappen’s hands as the rules allow a driver to change tyres
under a red flag.
"Why is there a red flag? The tyre wall looks fine! Find out
what the reason is," Hamilton says to his team on the radio.
"It is a risk we knew we had because we knew they could throw
the red flag, I'll come talk to you," responds Mercedes
strategist James Vowles.
L15 - Race restarts after an 18-minute stoppage. The cars line
up on the grid for a standing start, Verstappen at the front,
Hamilton alongside in second.
Hamilton gets a better start and jumps into the lead off the
line, Verstappen cuts the corner and takes back the lead.
Verstappen’s move leaves Hamilton wrong-footed, Alpine’s Esteban
Ocon passes him and pushes him down to third.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc tags Sergio Perez and sends the Red
Bull into a spin. The Mexican is out on the spot. As cars slow
down to avoid him, Haas driver Nikita Mazepin crashes into the
back of George Russell’s Williams.
Race halted again.
L16 - Race restarts again. Race director Michael Masi orders
Verstappen to line up behind Hamilton, effectively giving back
the place he gained from the Briton by going off track at the
previous restart.
As a result, Ocon lines up first, Hamilton second, Verstappen
third.
Hamilton gets a good start but Verstappen passes him on the
inside into the first corner. The Dutchman passes Ocon for the
lead on the following straight. Hamilton makes light contact
with Ocon going into the first corner and escapes unscathed.
Hamilton passes Ocon at the end of the lap. He moves up to
second and sets about chasing Verstappen as the two begin
trading fastest laps.
L23 - Virtual Safety Car deployed. Yuki Tsunoda crashes into the
barriers, breaking his front wing. He is able to get back to the
pits under his own power.
L24 - Virtual Safety Car Ends.
L28 - Virtual Safety Car deployed again briefly.
L29 - Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen collide, leaving
debris on the track. Virtual Safety Car deployed for the third
time.
L33 - Virtual Safety Car ends. Verstappen is 1.6 seconds clear
of Hamilton.
L36 - Virtual Safety Car deployed again.
L37 - Hamilton gets a nice exit out of the last corner and, with
the DRS open, gets a good run on the Red Bull. He pulls up
alongside and attempts to pass him on the outside. Both run
wide. Verstappen is asked to give the position to Hamilton.
Verstappen slows down ahead of Hamilton. Hamilton, appearing not
to have got the message, runs into the Red Bull and damages his
own front wing.
L38 - Hamilton radio: “He just brake-tested me! I’ve just hit
him, man, my wing’s broken.
Race engineer responds: It looks okay, he’s been told to give
you the position.
Hamilton: “That was dangerous driving dude.”
Mercedes sporting director Ron Meadows radios race director Masi
saying Mercedes did not know Verstappen was going to let
Hamilton past at that part of the track. Masi says he has
informed him already that Verstappen is going to give the place
back. Meadows responds that he was still in the process of
telling Hamilton's race engineer to pass the message on to the
Briton.
L42 - Verstappen gives Hamilton the lead but takes it back
immediately.
L43 - Stewards give Verstappen a five-second time penalty for
leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Verstappen lets Hamilton through into the lead. “We didn’t need
to do that, Max,” his engineer tells him as Verstappen has
already been given a time penalty.
Stewards say they will investigate the collision between
Hamilton and Verstappen after the race.
L46 - “Just be careful on the kerbs,” Hamilton, setting fastest
laps despite nursing a damaged front wing, is told over the
radio. Masi also tells Mercedes to warn Hamilton that his swerve
toward Verstappen while going past was "borderline."
L50 - Hamilton wins, Bottas snatches third from Ocon at the very
end, out-dragging him across the line with his DRS overtaking
aid wide open. "Get in there Lewis!" Hamilton's race engineer
says on the radio. "That has got to be the craziest race I can
remember, the cool heads won that out."
"It is what it is, mate, I tried at least," Verstappen says on
the radio.
"I don't know why he went into the back of you like that," Red
Bull team boss Christian Horner responds.
Race finish - Hamilton wins and scores fastest lap. He now heads
into the Abu Dhabi finale next weekend level on points with
Verstappen. Verstappen leads as he as won more races. Verstappen
is also voted driver of the day by fans.
(Compiled by Abhishek Takle; editing by Clare Fallon)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
|
