Nico Rosberg won the Japanese Grand Prix for the first time in his career and with it increased his world championship points lead, helping Mercedes wrap up the 2016 Formula 1 World Championship title – their third in three years.
Rosberg took advantage of Lewis Hamilton’s slow get-away from pole position, which saw the world champion slip down to eighth by the time the field reached Turn 1.
Immediately Rosberg, pursued by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, began to eke out a lead and manage the pace at the front. For his title rival, Hamilton, it was an afternoon of playing catch-up and damage limitation (how often have we hear those words this year?)
His strategy was to maximise his first set of tyres, which he did, allowing him to run a couple of laps longer than his rivals before pitting. When he emerged from the pits, he was sixth and a few laps later fifth.
With a few laps to go he was third and pursuing Verstappen for second place. But the teenager held firm, as has become tradition these days. The Mercedes driver attacked on the penultimate lap going into the Chicane but Verstappen defended the inside line and Hamilton went straight down the escape road.
Thus Verstappen claimed second, with Hamilton settling for third.
Report in progress…
Read the full story at GRAND PRIX 247
No comments:
Post a Comment