F1: Lewis Hamilton Wins Chinese GP; Equals Vettel On Points

Lewis Hamilton caps dominant weekend to move joint top in title race; Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel second in Shanghai.

Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes led from pole position as he slid to victory in wet and windy conditions at the 2017 Chinese GP on Sunday.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel secured second after starting from the same position on the grid, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen soared 13 places beat Daniel Ricciardo to the third place.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

The wet but drying track witnessed only 15 drivers finishing the race. All the drivers except Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz were on intermediate tyres. The virtual safety car was deployed on lap two after contact between Willams' Lance Stoll and Sergio Perez's Force India, sent the former's car onto the gravel.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

Two laps later, the safety car was out after Antonio Giovinazzi sustained his second heavy crash. With the safety car gone on lap 8 leaving Hamilton in total control followed by Ricciardo, Raikkonen and Verstappen.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

As the race progressed, both Vettel and Verstappen challenged their respective team mates and then Vettel heading wheel to wheel with Ricciardo surviving to pull off another move to get ahead of the Red Bull car.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

After that, Vettel was on a charge to make up the places, sliding past Raikkonen on lap 20, then driving his way around Ricciardo - while hitting wheels with the Australian - two laps later. Verstappen then locked up his wheels on lap 28, allowing the Ferrari to take his place.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

From there on, Vettel seemed to close the gap with Hamilton after both the drivers pitted for more tyres; however, it was not to be as Hamilton matched him for pace; eventually, Vettel finished 6.2 seconds behind.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

After Vettel's win in Australia, he is now tied with Hamilton in the drivers' championship with 43 points respectively, while Mercedes has overtaken Ferrari in the constructors' standings at 66 points versus 65.

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

2017 Chinese GP Classifications:

1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, +6.250
3. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, +45.192
4. Daniel Riccardo, Red Bull, +46.035
5. Kimi Raikonen, Ferrari, +48.076
6. Valteri Bottas, Mercedes, +48.808
7. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, +1:12.893
8. Kevin Magnussen, Haas, +1 lap
9. Sergio Perez, Sahara Force India, +1 lap
10. Esteban Ocon, Sahara Force India, +1 lap

2017 Chinese GP: Lewis Hamilton Wins; Equals Vettel In Points

The next race is the Bahrain GP scheduled on April 16, 2017, stay tuned to DriveSpark for updates.

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Article Published On: Monday, April 10, 2017, 12:30 [IST]
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