Hamilton wins in Brazil, angry Verstappen gets physical

Lewis Hamilton won the Brazilian Grand Prix to help his Mercedes team take the constructors' title for a fifth season in a row but Max Verstappen will again hog the headlines.

Hamilton, who had already wrapped up his fifth F1 drivers' title, benefited from Red Bull's Verstappen being involved in a prang with backmarker Esteban Ocon.

The Dutchman had been in the lead at the time and primed for victory. Ocon was given a 10-second penalty by stewards for not giving Verstappen enough room. After the race the pair exchanged words and Ocon said Verstappen had pushed him.

"I was really surprised by the behaviour of Max, afterwards, with the FIA having to intervene. He pushed me and wanted to punch me and that is not professional," Ocon said.

"I'm used to the fights with Max. He's always been the same. It goes back a few years."

Verstappen told a press conference: "I think we had a great car, the strategy did really well, and we did our race until I got taken out on Turn Two. He [Ocon] got a penalty and that tells you the stewards know who was in the wrong.

"The penalty for me is that I lost the victory today. Hopefully in 15 years time we can laugh about it."

Hamilton, who had started on pole, finished less than two seconds ahead of the 21-year-old Verstappen, who had to settle for second having earlier passed the Briton with flying speed.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen completed the podium at Interlagos with team-mate Sebastian Vettel only finishing sixth in another forgettable race for the German in the second half of the season.

Hamilton's 10th victory this year means he has won half of all the races ahead of the climax in Abu Dhabi in two weeks' time.  

"We were a sitting duck at one stage," Hamilton said. "We were having problems with the engine. I just want to thank everyone. The team give me the tools and I do the best I can."

mm/mds (reuters, AP)

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- "These guys have worked so hard the last six years. It is what they work for every day," Hamilton says of Mercedes winning the constructors' title to go with his drivers' title.

- "I dont know what to say. Second place is good but it should have been first," says Verstappen.

- Max Verstappen will be fuming. The Red Bull was leading after a better tire strategy than Hamilton. But then Force India backmarker Esteban Ocon tangled with the Dutchman as Verstappen tried to overtake. Ocon picked up a 10 second penalty while Hamilton zoomed past to pick up the victory. 

FINISH: LEWIS HAMILTON WINS THE BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

Lap 70 of 71 - Mercedes heading for the constructors' championship, Hamilton clinging to the win despite grip problem

Lap 68 of 71 - Gap down to 1.5 seconds! 

Lap 67 of 71 - Going to be a good finish. Verstappen trails Hamilton by just 1.9 seconds. Hamilton has been moaning about his car and tires all race yet leads!

Lap 65 of 71 - Top 5 at present: HAM, VER, RAI, RIC, BOT

Lap 59 of 71 - 10-second stop go penalty for Ocon after Verstappen clash. Not much use to the Dutchman though.

Lap 57 of 71 - This isn't over yet. Verstappen has cut Hamilton's lead to 3.5 seconds.

Here is a shot of the Verstappen-Ocon collision. General consensus is that Ocon should have left more room. 

Lap 54 of 71 - Vettel pits again. Strange as we all assumed it was a one-stop strategy. He is desperate for 2018 to finish. The German started second and is now seventh.

Lap 53 of 71 - Hamilton leads Verstappen by 4.6 seconds now. 

Lap 50 of 71 - "I might have floor damage," says Verstappen. It was going so well for the young driver but it has all played into Hamilton's hands.
Lap 46 of 71 - The stewards announce the collision is under investigation. Hard to tell who was at fault. HAM, VER, RAI the top three now 

Lap 44 of 71 - Verstappen tangles with a Force India out of nowhere!!! Hamilton back in front. Contact between Ocon and Verstappen. Completely unnecessary. "What an idiot!" screams the Dutchman over the radio!

Lap 41 of 71 - Verstappen gets past Hamilton to lead as Ricciardo pits. It is the Dutchman's race to win here. Good tire strategy from Red Bull!!

Lap 37 of 71 - Verstappen pits! Halfway point a Interlagos and top 10 is currently:  RIC (yet to pit), HAM, VER, BOT, RAI, VET, MAG, PER, LEC, GRO

Lap 31 of 71 - Mercedes need to finish with 13 points more than Ferrari to seal the constructors' championship. Up in the air at the moment but it all depends on Verstappen's pit stop. The Red Bulls setting fastest laps consistently now.

Lap 25 of 71 - "This tire does not feel good," says Hamilton just a few laps after pitting. Not a good sign for the Briton, who is up to fifth. 

Lap 23 of 71 - Sauber's Marcus Ericsson retires with what looks like a technical problem. So at least Alonso isn't last. Verstappen leads but has yet to pit, unlike polesitter Hamilton

Lap 20 of 71 - Hamilton pits and comes back out in seventh.

Lap 17 of 71 - I bet Alonso can't wait to end his F1 career in some respescts. McLaren mechanics mess up a pit stop. His right back tire is not on properly. Stop takes ages. The Spaniard is now last...

Lap 14 of 71 - Verstappen is flying. The Red Bulls were expected to be strong here. The Dutchman is up to second. Top 10: HAM, VER, BOT, RAI, VET, RIC, LEC, GRO, MAG, GAS 

Lap 8 of 71 - Not a good day for Vettel so far. Down in fifth at present

Lap 5 of 71 - Leader Hamilton's gap to Bottas in second is already 1.403 seconds.

Lap 3 of 71 - Such an amazing straight at Interlagos with the grid going up a hill. Bottas was clean in overtaking Vettel. With the title won, will Hamilton let Bottas win here? Long way to go but only six of the last 18 races in Brazil have been won from pole. Verstappen gets past Raikkonen into fourth.

Lap 1 of 71 - Hamilton keeps the lead but Bottas gets past Vettel and moves into second. 

18.10 - Something went wrong with Vettel's car when he started the formation lap. We will see what happens with the proper start.

18:07 - Here is a reminder of how qualifying went as we wait for the race to start in three minutes.

18:02 - Hamilton is already drivers' champion but the constructors' championship is still alive with two races left.  Mercedes have 585 points to Ferrari's 530. The Italians need a stunning showing to turn it around. Will Kimi Raikkonen (fourth on the grid) look to do something special in his final two races in red? 

17:55 - Weather forecast did not look great earlier on but the skies are relatively clear in Sao Paulo at present with some cloud. It is always a toss up whether you want rain for an F1 race. It ruins the flow but excitement normally ensues! Lights out in 15 minutes. 

17:47 - Fernando Alonso announced on Saturday that he is heading to the Indy 500 again next year as he looks to complete the triple crown of Monaco, Le Mans and Indy. This is his penultimate F1 race. The Spaniard has been reminiscing on Twitter:

17:40 - The Brazilian GP is no longer the season-ending race (we have Abu Dhabi in two weeks) but the race is still a big occasion. There were massive queues of fans to get in this morning despite no Brazilian on the grid and the drivers' title already being decided. Amazing passion - especially given it could rain.

17:29 - Interlagos of course holds special memories for Hamilton. It was here, on the final corner, that he won his maiden world title in 2008 with McLaren. Now he has five...

17:25 - Some real fun and games in Saturday qualifying. Hamilton almost hit Sergey Sirotkin at high speed but avoids any sanction. Germany's Vettel meanwhile got so angry with stewards he broke the car weighing scales! A big fine for the Ferrari man but he keeps his second spot on the grid.

17:20 - Welcome to DW's live blog of the Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix. it starts at 1810 CET. World champion Lewis Hamilton is on pole ahead of Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas.