Sportblog | The Guardian — Formula One RSS



Lewis Hamilton eyes fourth title after showing composure and maturity | Giles Richards

The Briton knows how to play the game and stay out of trouble as he progresses to the threshold of another drivers’ crown with his triumph in AustinDespite being beaten off the line by Sebastian Vettel Lewis Hamilton once again displayed the composure and race craft that has all but secured his fourth Formula One world championship. There was no problem with the British driver’s start but Vettel had it hooked up exceptionally well and had the inside line going into turn one. Hamilton went to squeeze him but recognised he could not hold the place and avoided any potentially race-ending contact. The contrast with Vettel’s reaction to being jumped by Max Verstappen in Singapore could not be clearer. The...

Continue reading



Lewis Hamilton’s dominance should lead to F1 endgame in Mexico | Giles Richards

The Briton was peerless throughout the weekend in Texas and his wait to become Britain’s most successful driver has surely been delayed only one weekUltimately then, after opening with a pre-race ceremony of razzmatazz and showbiz theatrics, the US Grand Prix was not to be the stage on which Lewis Hamilton delivered the dramatic finale of claiming his fourth Formula One world championship. The win he had looked like delivering all weekend was duly secured but Sebastian Vettel taking second place has ensured their title fight will go to the next round in Mexico.Yet Hamilton has as good as claimed the crown with a drive of verve, composure and dominance that he has delivered so often this season. Not content...

Continue reading



Can Formula One's American takeover fuel a long-awaited US expansion?

Liberty Media’s $8bn acquisition of Formula One in January has given rise to fresh questions about the series’ intentions in the United StatesAbout an hour’s drive from where I live, in the coastal hinterlands of South Carolina, lies the city of Savannah, Georgia. And every so often I’ll cross the border for a taste of the big city.On one such excursion a few months back, while walking through a neighborhood on the fringe of Savannah’s tourist district, I found myself doubling back to examine a historical marker for something called the American Grand Prize. What’s its connection to Sunday’s United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas? Well, it’s the granddaddy, an early milepost on the way to Formula One as...

Continue reading



Hamilton deserves credit for addressing issue whether or not he takes a knee | Giles Richards

Lewis Hamilton may decide against kneeling for the US anthem in Austin but his interest in political issues is a welcome change in the world of F1Lewis Hamilton is the most fascinating character in Formula One and thankfully so. It is a sport whose participants have become so stage-managed as to have hidden their personalities behind a slick corporate veneer. Hamilton has been steadfast in remaining true to himself. At the US Grand Prix this weekend, he may do so again but with potentially huge and also perhaps unexpected repercussions. If the British driver chooses to kneel during the US national anthem on Sunday, it would put him at the heart of one of the most divisive conflicts between politics and...

Continue reading



Ferrari vow to fight Lewis Hamilton to the bitter end of 2017 season | Giles Richards

Vettel’s contest with Hamilton and Mercedes looks as good as over, Force India bemoan budgets and ESPN to take over from NBCLewis Hamilton grasped his chance, as he always does, with both hands at Suzuka. He had done all the preparation, putting his Mercedes on pole and with Sebastian Vettel out on lap four, he converted it to maximise the damage. The championship is within his grasp but for neutrals this outcome feels like a shame, after a season that had promised to go to the last race. However, Ferrari’s team principal, Maurizio Arrivabene, is not giving up. “We will fight until the last race. The last lap. The last turn,” he said. But in truth, short of a two-race...

Continue reading