Lewis Hamilton wins 2019 F1 championship: Nine key moments for the Mercedes man

Lewis Hamilton

The key moments in Lewis Hamilton's 2019 title win

Matthew Scott

Monday 4 November 2019 15:00

Key moments in Lewis Hamilton's 2019 title success part 2

Canadian GP (Qual: 2nd – Race: 1st)

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A crash in practice was swiftly shaken off as Hamilton qualified well ahead of Bottas, with only Vettel head of him on the grid, although the German proved difficult to catch in the race thanks to Ferrari's mighty straight-line pace, always a key difference-maker at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

However, this remained a Vettel prone to error, and he duly mis-stepped at the chicane, running wide and offering Hamilton the tightest of gaps to attempt an overtake, which was duly slammed shut as Vettel skated back onto the asphalt from the grass verge.

The stewards deemed it worthy of a five-second penalty, effectively handing Hamilton the victory as he crossed the line in close enough quarters to earn victory. As well as securing extra points, the move also set in motion a relaxing of in-race penalties that would paint every drivers' efforts over the remainder of the season.

British GP (Qual: 2nd – Race: 1st)

Edged out of pole position by Bottas with a margin of 0.006 seconds, Hamilton looked to redress the balance off the line at Silverstone, but the Finn put up dogged resistance, repassing the Brit after a thrilling chase between them early on.

From there, Hamilton made the crucial decision to switch to a one-stop strategy, with Bottas sticking to the safer two-stopper, aided further by a kindly timed safety car which put him into a comfortable lead of the race.

Hamilton was almost in showboat mode, setting the fastest lap of the race on his final tour of home territory, having put 32 laps into the hard tyres he was using. Bottas, by comparison, could not match the time on the two step softer compound.