Lewis Hamilton aiming to build championship lead at Japanese GP
Formula 1 | October 05, 2017 16:40 ISTA win in Suzuka would move Hamilton a step closer to a third F1 title in four years with Mercedes and his fourth overall.
A win in Suzuka would move Hamilton a step closer to a third F1 title in four years with Mercedes and his fourth overall.
Mercedes is 118 points clear of Ferrari and close to sealing a fourth straight constructors' championship
Having seen both of its cars fail to score points at the previous race in Singapore, Ferrari lost Kimi Raikkonen moments before this race.
Hamilton secured the 70th pole of his career in qualifying, and his fourth straight in Malaysia, while Vettel failed to set a time because of an engine problem.
Vettel, meanwhile, was handed a 20-place grid penalty after Ferrari made several component changes to his engine before the race.
Max Verstappen qualified third ahead of Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo, while Hamilton's teammate Valtteri Bottas was fifth.
It was a reversal of Friday's second practice when Vettel was quickest ahead of Raikkonen.
Malaysia, however, is dropping off the calendar next year due to a massive shortfall in attendance at the Sepang circuit.
On the eve of his 20th birthday, Verstappen was .757 seconds faster than Ricciardo, whose confidence is high following seven podiums in 10 races.
Raikkonen is fifth in the 2017 drivers' standings with 138 points, while Vettel is in the second spot with 235 points, 28 behind leader Hamilton.
Ferrari's Vettel had topped the drivers' standings, but the Mercedes' racer bounced back to clinch the top spot, 28 points ahead of the German driver with six races to go.
After blowing pole position by causing a crash at the Singapore GP two weeks ago, the Ferrari driver threw away a golden chance to regain the championship lead from Lewis Hamilton.
Although he believes that there are five to six years left in his career, the record of Schumacher is nowhere in his mind.
The 63-year old F1 chief said India should have a Grand Prix considering its rapid growth as a nation.
The Briton, who won the Italian Grand Prix last Sunday, is currently standing at the top of the drivers' championship after winnings six out of 13 races this year.
Hamilton's fifth win this season was his 58th overall, having equalled Michael Schumacher's pole position record of 68 in the qualifying race.
Since joining Ferrari, Vettel has won seven races, three in 2015 and four this year while securing 28 podium finishes.
Although Hamilton has won four of 11 races this season so far, and Bottas has won two, Mercedes is experiencing more problems than before.
Kimi Raikkonen finishes in the second spot followed by Mercedes Valtteri Bottas in third and Lewis Hamilton in the fourth spot .
The four-time F1 champion clocked a best lap of 1 minute, 16.276 seconds, while Raikkonen was .168 behind in front of a large contingent of flag-waving Finnish fans.
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