Lewis Hamilton took his 72nd career victory today, his tenth of the 2018 season and second in Interlagos. Valtteri set the fastest lap of the race - his tenth fastest lap in Formula One - and finished the race in P5.
Today's result marks the 50th win of the hybrid era for Lewis, which means that he won more than 50 percent of the 99 races since 2014. The result also marks the tenth win for the Mercedes-AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+, a championship-winning car that has now earned its designation as a true Silver Arrow.
Lewis (383 points) leads the Drivers' Championship by 81 points from Sebastian Vettel (302 points), with Valtteri (237 points) in P4. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport (620 points) lead Ferrari (553 points) by 67 points in the Constructors' Championship - an unassailable lead with 43 points still to be scored in the 2018 season.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director, accepted the Constructors' trophy on behalf of the team.
Toto Wolff: We just wrote Championship history - but winning the fifth double World Championship feels so surreal. Who would have thought this would be possible when we embarked on this mission eight years ago? If anyone had mentioned this record back then, we would have told them they are crazy. And yet, here we are today, having just equalled the Ferrari record from the Schumacher years. It's a great honour to represent Mercedes on the track and I can't thank everyone enough for their great work, both here at the track and in Brackley and Brixworth, and also for the continued support from Daimler in Stuttgart and PETRONAS in Kuala Lumpur and Turin. None of this would have been possible without their contributions and without the hard work and the passion of everyone on the team. I had a conversation with Lewis on Sunday night in Mexico; he had just won his fifth world championship, but both of us were not fully satisfied - because our objective was to win both titles. That's why he was fighting so hard today because he wanted to finish this on a high, win the race and win the constructors' championship for the team. Valtteri had a trickier season than Lewis, but he has improved his performance this year and played a vital role for this championship success. Five consecutive titles - I'm immensely proud of this amazing achievement.
James Allison: This is an amazing, amazing group of people built up over many years. The skill and the dedication in a sport that is famously complicated - to get all those ducks lined up in a row, not just once or twice but season after season - is just incredible. What was difficult about this season is that the opposition were that quick. We came to the races not knowing if we were going to win, not having any idea whether they were going to smash us. It ebbed and flowed all through the year. We thought we had them punched down so many times - only for them to bounce back up and give us a really tough time, and it's still happening now. The fact that this year has been so desperately close shows that the difference between the teams is utterly tiny - and it was Lewis who made the difference for us this year. He keeps putting it on pole, in the races we can make mistakes and he'll recover it by doing something unlikely on the track that no-one sees coming and he's spent the whole year not making mistakes. He's just the consummate racing driver. We're very lucky with the driver partnership that we have. Valtteri had a lot of bad luck at the start of the year when he might have had some race wins and has not had the same success that Lewis has had. Valtteri has been stronger this year than he was last year, he's been a brilliant team-mate to us all and a huge asset.
"Unfortunately, even though Kimi finished on the podium today, we were unable to reach our goal, which was to keep the battle going for the Constructors' title. Right from the formation lap, we became aware of a problem with a sensor on Seb's car. This meant that, for the whole race, he had to run different settings to those we would have normally used and that made the car difficult to drive. Congratulations to Mercedes on taking the teams' title."
Christian Horner: "After having fantastic pace in the race today it's incredibly disappointing to lose the victory with Max following what can only be described as irresponsible driving from a backmarker. Nevertheless, we had phenomenal pace which was demonstrated by both Max and Daniel.
Exceptional driving and a great strategy enabled Max to take the lead following the pit stops and Daniel made swift progress from 11th on the grid with some outstanding overtakes, particularly on Bottas and Vettel. Second and fourth is a good result for the Team, but we can't help but feel that we have been robbed as it should have been more. Daniel was so close to securing the third podium spot and without the penalty who knows what he could have achieved this afternoon. The encouraging factor today was our outright pace and everyone in the Team should be proud of their performance and contribution. Congratulations to everyone at Mercedes, we know how much hard work goes into winning the Constructors' Championship. They have been the dominant team this year and let's hope we can give them a harder time next year."
Racing Point Force scored a point at Interlagos this afternoon with Sergio Perez ending the Brazilian Grand Prix in tenth place and Esteban Ocon in P15.
Otmar Szafnauer: "Rescuing one point was realistically the only result we could achieve given our difficult Saturday. Sergio completed a good race, fighting against the Renaults in the opening stages and opening a gap. It was a fairly lonely race after that, because we couldn't close the gap on the two Haas cars in front, but given the circumstances it was a good result. Esteban had done a good job making up ground from the back of the grid and would have probably finished in P11 if it hadn't been for the clash with Verstappen. The rules state that you're allowed to unlap yourself and Esteban was much faster than Max at that stage. Unfortunately he wasn't left any space in the corner and that ruined the race for both."
Sergey Sirotkin finished 16th and Lance Stroll 18th in the Brazilian Grand Prix. Both cars started the race on the soft compound Pirelli tyre, with Sergey 14th and Lance 19th on the grid. Sergey made his first and only pitstop for the medium tyre on Lap 16. Lance pitted a lap later, again for the medium tyre and made his second and final stop on lap 65 for the supersoft tyre.
Paddy Lowe, Chief Technical Officer: It was a frustrating race with lots of blue flags. We took a gamble with our strategy, stopping early to get both cars onto the prime tyre in an attempt to undercut the cars we were racing. Unfortunately, this didn't pay off due to the degradation of the prime tyre and both cars progressively lost positions. These aren't the results we were hoping for today, however both drivers drove well, within the limits of the car, and performed the necessary tyre management.
Renault Sport Formula One Team faced disappointment at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace with Carlos Sainz finishing twelfth and Nico Hulkenberg retiring from the Grande Premio Heineken do Brazil.
Both drivers made promising starts at an overcast Interlagos with Carlos passing Nico on the opening lap. Nico's race didn't make the halfway mark as excessive engine temperatures meant he was forced into retirement on lap 32 as a precautionary measure. Carlos was able to push to the chequered flag with his two-stop strategy, but he eventually fell short of the points.
Nico started from P13 on new Pirelli Soft (yellow) tyres, retiring on lap 32. Carlos started from P15 on new Soft tyres, pitting on lap 25 for a new set of Medium (white) tyres and again on lap 48 for a new set of Supersoft (red) tyres.
Cyril Abiteboul, Team Principal: "After two good races it is disappointing to have a weekend like we experienced in Brazil. We struggled in qualifying and were unable to gain positions after the start. Neither car was able to harness our race pace which, although better than some of the cars ahead of us, was not sufficient to overtake them. We retired Nico as a precautionary measure due to excessive engine temperatures as we didn't want to risk losing PU elements ahead of Abu Dhabi; there was little to lose from this approach given his position on track. We tried to make the most with Carlos, however it was insufficient to get us in the points today. This race has highlighted again that we do have a variation in our competitiveness which will be a focal point for the winter. Clearly we need to be more consistent looking to the seasons ahead."
Franz Tost (Team Principal): "We started the race with Pierre in ninth position and finished only 13th, so it wasn't a satisfying result for us. The race pace wasn't there and we were simply too slow so we have to analyse why. Brendon started from 16th with the Medium tyre, and we pitted him very late to switch to the Supersoft which was a very good move, because he was able to increase his pace towards the end of the race. However, unfortunately we weren't able to score points today."
Toyoharu Tanabe (Honda F1 Technical Director): "Both cars finished the race, but our package wasn't quick enough to finish in the points and we were unable to make the most of Gasly's ninth place grid position. We must analyse all the data from this weekend and try to do better in the final round of the season in two weeks' time. On behalf of Honda, I offer our congratulations to Mercedes on winning the Constructors' title today."
Haas F1 Team earned a double-points result for the fourth time this season in the Brazilian Grand Prix Sunday with drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen finishing eighth and ninth, respectively, in the penultimate round of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship.
The six points from the collective result of Grosjean and Magnussen at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in Sao Paulo allowed Haas F1 Team to solidify its fifth-place standing in the constructors' ranks. The American squad now has 90 points and trails fourth-place Renault by 24 points and holds a 28-point advantage over sixth-place McLaren. Magnussen is ninth in the driver's championship with 55 points, tying his highest season point total, earned during his rookie year in 2014 with McLaren when he finished 11th in points. Grosjean is currently 13th with 35 points.
The Haas F1 Team duo proved tenacious throughout the 71-lap race around the 4.309-kilometer (2.677-mile), 15-turn circuit in Sao Paulo's Interlagos neighborhood.
Grosjean started eighth and picked up one position at the start, surviving a scrape with the Sauber of Marcus Ericsson. Magnussen fell one spot to 11th in the opening-lap scrum.
A charging Daniel Ricciardo, who would go on to finish fourth, powered his Red Bull past Grosjean on lap four. But it soon became apparent that eighth was Grosjean's rightful place, as he was never truly challenged thereafter.
Magnussen, meanwhile, leapfrogged Ericsson for 10th when the Sauber driver slowed on lap nine. Magnussen then set his sights on the Toro Rosso of Pierre Gasly, taking ninth on lap 13.
Both Grosjean and Magnussen navigated their pit stops flawlessly. Grosjean stopped on lap 32, swapping his Pirelli P Zero Red supersoft tires for White medium tires that would carry him through the finish. Magnussen made his stop on lap 41, jettisoning his Yellow soft tires for supersofts.
With their pit stops done and the pit stops of others having cycled through, Grosjean was eighth and Magnussen was ninth. They held these positions for the final 30 laps to pick up Haas F1 Team's first double-points finish since the Aug. 26 Belgian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton won the Brazilian Grand Prix from the pole to earn his 72nd career Formula One victory, his series-leading 10th this season and his second at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace. The Mercedes driver's margin of victory over second-place Max Verstappen of Red Bull was 1.469 seconds. And after Hamilton clinched the drivers' championship in the preceding Mexican Grand Prix, his win in the Brazilian Grand Prix clinched Mercedes' fifth straight constructors' title.
Guenther Steiner: "It was a good result to have both cars in the points. Everybody did a great job over the whole weekend, and this is what you get when you do a good job. It was fantastic to lap the Renault that's in front of us in the championship."
The team endured a challenging Brazilian Grand Prix, with Stoffel finishing in 15th and Fernando in 17th positions.
Stoffel had a tough start to the race from the back of the grid, and initial progress was tricky over a short lap with a close pack. However, he managed his pace well and executed a one-stop strategy, which enabled him to overtake cars ahead of him in the final stages to finish in 14th, although he was given a five-second time penalty after the race for ignoring blue flags, dropping him to 15th.
Fernando had a difficult race. After a strong start, the team decided to take advantage and pit Fernando early with the aim of performing the undercut on the cars in front. However, an issue in the pit-stop meant he was stationary for over 12 seconds, negating any chance of progress for the remainder of the race. However, thankfully the issue was spotted by the crew, which otherwise could have meant a retirement had Fernando been allowed to leave the box earlier.
Fernando, by then in 18th and last position, set about trying to catch the pack ahead, which was tough given the relative pace compared to the cars in front. However, he managed to overtake a couple of competitors, and was set to finish in 16th position, until he too was awarded a five-second time penalty for ignoring blue flags, leaving him in a net 17th position after the chequered flag.
Gil de Ferran, Sporting Director: "This was a difficult race for us. Fernando had a good first lap, which put us in a better position. We decided to box him relatively early to enable him the opportunity to undercut some competitors, but unfortunately we had an issue during the pit-stop, which essentially killed his race, as any progress was marred by traffic and blue flags. However, had it not been for the experience of our pit-crew, who spotted the issue with the right rear wheel, the result could have been race-ending. Credit to the crew for their hard work, as always.
"On Stoffel's side, the beginning of his race was clouded by traffic, however, as the race went on he made steady progress, showing good pace in the closing stages, and finished in striking distance of 11th place.
"As it transpired, we didn't have the pace this weekend to fight for points. We leave Brazil obviously disappointed, but also heartened by a great Brazilian Grand Prix and all the support we felt throughout the weekend from our McLaren fans."
The Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team leaves Sao Paulo with a superb race by Charles Leclerc and a consolidated 8th position in the Constructors Championship. A strong qualifying session, the best of the season for the Swiss Team, saw Marcus Ericsson and Charles Leclerc taking the start from the 6th and 7th spots on the grid, determined to score points. Everything was in place for a strong race, but unfortunately a heated start to the Brazilian Grand Prix saw two different races unfold for the two drivers. While Charles Leclerc had a strong start, gaining positions on the opening lap, Marcus Ericsson faced a different set of challenges.
Eager to extract the most of his strong position, the Swedish driver gave his all to retain it, however, had a difficult fight ahead of him. After a contact with another car on the opening laps, his floor and front wing were damaged. Despite the team calling him back to the pits in an attempt to fix his car, he eventually had to a retire from the race.
Leclerc, on the other hand, gave yet another strong and consistent performance, fighting at the top of the midfield for the entire duration of the race. Finishing in 7th position for the third time this season, the Monegasque rookie has collected another six points, advancing to 14th position in the Driver's Championship with a total of 33 points to his name.
The Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team holds a total of 42 points and is currently in 8th place in the Constructors' Championship. Marcus Ericsson is in 17th place in the Drivers' Championship, holding a total of nine points for the season.
Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal and CEO Sauber Motorsport AG: "Overall, this was a positive weekend for our team. Both drivers gave strong performances in qualifying and started the race at the top of the midfield. Charles finishing the race in 7th place is a good step forward in consolidating P8 in the championship. We do however leave Sao Paulo with mixed feelings, as Marcus had to retire from the race. After a contact with another car, there was damage to his floor and front wing, which made it impossible for him to finish. Nevertheless, our pace is good, and we are fighting for positions in the championship. Our progress continues, and this is a reward for the hard work done at the track and at the factory in Switzerland over the course of this year. I look forward to finishing the season in strong form in Abu Dhabi."
With overtaking and action from start to finish, as well as several changes of lead and a tight battle for victory, Brazil delivered an excitingly strategic race, with three different tactical approaches from the three leading teams. In total, there were five different strategies in the top six, and many other variations further down the field.
Lewis Hamilton eventually won the race for Mercedes, with a one-stop supersoft-medium strategy, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen - the race leader until a clash with a lapped car - selected a supersoft-soft strategy, also used by his team mate Daniel Ricciardo to recover well from 11th due to a grid penalty.
Ferrari was the only team in the top 10 to start on the soft tyre, with Kimi Raikkonen ending up third with a single stop for the medium tyre, while his team mate Sebastian Vettel went for a two-stopper using all three compounds. At the flag, the top four were separated by just five seconds. Another impressive performance came from Sauber's Charles Leclerc, who used the same strategy as the race winner to maintain the strong P7 he scored in qualifying to the end of the grand prix.
Mario Isola: "As expected weather conditions were warmer today, which contributed to some cases of blistering. Brazil was definitely one of the most entertaining races of the year, where strategy was not only crucial but also very varied. Despite these extremely different approaches, the fight was very close among all the top teams and there was plenty of wheel-to-wheel racing, which is exactly the objective that we are all aiming for in Formula 1: drivers pushing hard for the win rather than managing pace. Red Bull and Max Verstappen made particularly good use of the tyres by showing consistent race-winning pace while using only the two softest compounds and stopping just once. Congratulations to Mercedes for another manufacturers' title, sealed with another victory for Lewis Hamilton."
