Vettel´s early overtake earns Brazil victory as Hamilton misses out of the podium

Sebastian Vettel overtook polesitter Valtteri Bottas into the first corner as he claimed victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday.

The German’s slim hopes of winning the drivers’ title were ended in Mexico a fortnight ago, Lewis Hamilton finishing ninth in that race to clinch his fourth crown.

But, with the Englishman starting from the pit lane, Vettel stole a march on Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate from lights out and faced little threat to his lead throughout.

There was a brief glimmer of hope for Bottas thanks to the questionable timing of Vettel’s pit stop, but the former Red Bull man re-emerged just in front of the Finn and opened up a lead once more.

Hamilton, meanwhile, made swift progress through the field and led for a period – during a flurry of pit stops for the frontrunners – but was ultimately unable to earn an unlikely podium finish.

Bottas had to settle for the runner-up spot for a second successive race, with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen completing the top three.

Williams’ Felipe Massa – competing in his final Brazilian Grand Prix ahead of his retirement at the end of the season – was the best of the rest behind F1’s power trio of teams, following Red Bull duo Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo home in seventh.