Anyway, that’s me signing off for the night. Stay on the site for our race report, and more news and reaction. Thanks for your company and comments. Bye.
Updated
And up they step to the podium. Rosberg and Vettel amble out before Hamilton springs through to climb to the top of it. Here’s the anthems.
Updated
Hamilton has a few quiet moments alone backstage – well, as “alone” as you can be with a TV camera right behind you. He’s understandably emotional and lost for words. And, equally understandably, cream-crackered. Finally, he quips “where’s the Stetson?” at his team.
Hamilton leaps out of his car, springing all over the place with delirium, hugging his team. It’s a historic third world title for the Briton. An incredible race, that Hamilton was by no means in control of for long spells, but Rosberg’s late error let his fellow Mercedes driver in, and that was that. A thoroughly engrossing race.
Race standings
So they finished: 1 Hamilton, 2 Rosberg, 3 Vettel, 4 Verstappen, 5 Perez, 6 Button, 7 Sainz, 8 Maldonado, 9 Nasr, 10 Ricciardo
Hamilton, voice aquiver, radios back to his team and says “this is the greatest moment of my life.”
Lewis Hamilton wins the US Grand Prix and retains his world title!
He’s done it after all. Lap 56 is all about the Vettel-Rosberg duel as we go into the final lap but Vettel can’t quite manage it despite multiple attesmpts on the corners. Hamilton stretches clear, and wins in the end with ease. His third win here!
Updated
Lap 55: Hamilton is closing in on that world title now as the top three stays the same with a lap to go. Vettel closes on Rosberg by 6/10 of a second and he’s got some DRS opportunity here.
Lap 54: If Vettel can take second from Rosberg, that keeps the title race alive for at least one more race, but the Mercedes man is clinging on to second behind Hamilton. Button drops back to seventh.
Lap 53: Hamilton leads still, with just three laps to go,and the gap is 4.37sec. Sainz and Button are having the most intense personal battle, for sixth and seventh.
I’m sure there are, but you get the drift.
Lap 52: So it’s Hamilton 1, Rosberg 2, Vettel 3, Verstappen 4 and Perez 5 with four laps to go. This is just the sort of race the sport needs.
Lap 51: It’s still the old one-two from Mercedes out front, with Hamilton looking quite comfortable, 2.7secs ahead. If it stays this way, Hamilton will be the champion! Ricciardo went in for a change of tyres at the start of that lap.
Updated
Lap 50: Hamilton has a lead of 2.26sec at the start of the lap, Rosberg is second and Vettel third, as Button powers up to sixth. Ricciardo has been going backwards in the second half of this race and is now back in tenth.
Lap 49: Can Hamilton hold on? So far yes. Meanwhile Sainz moves up to seventh ahead of Ricciardo and Button, but the latter then overtakes both to take seventh back. It’s twisting and turning like a twisty turny thing back there.
Lap 48: Hamilton suffers a little lock-up in turn one, but the two Mercedes are still setting the pace. And Hamilton takes the lead – with Vettel moving hard to challenge Rosberg for second.
Lap 47: Rosberg restarts brilliantly, roaring ahead. Verstappen tries to take on Hamilton on turn one but can’t manage it and then Vettel overhauls the teenager to take third. Alonso is fifth, Perez sixth. Button coming under pressure from Maldonado in eighth.
Updated
Lap 46: Jenson Button comes back from the pits in eighth place, as the safety car continues to regulate proceedings. It’s going to be quite some sprint finish once it finally pulls off, which it does at the end of the lap.
Lap 45: Button goes into the pits. The safety car is still out, as debris from Kvyatt’s crash continues to be cleared, and Rosberg leads from Hamilton with the teenager Verstappen in third.
Lap 44: The safety car is still out as Hamilton goes into the pits, but so does Vettel again! On to softer tyres. And the advantage moves back in the direction of the championship leader. Rosberg currently leads, from Hamilton and Verstappen, who’s had the same tyres since lap 27. If it stays like this, the championship is still alive going into the Mexican GP.
Lap 43: Kvyat crashes out! Hitting the side on the penultimate corner after a horrible 90-degree skid after overdoing it on the bend, and out comes the safety car. That looked nasty. “Sorry guys, sorry,” he says on the radio.
Lap 42: Rosberg on his new soft compound tyres is looking good again, right on Vettel’s tail, and the overtake that has looked likely happens. It’s a Mercedes one-two again.
Lap 41: Hamilton has a five-second gap over Vettel, but Rosberg is roaring back in third and closing the gap. Verstappen is fourth and Button is fifth.
Lap 40: Hamilton will possibly have to stay to the end now on this set of tyres – Hamilton is sceptical about doing so. Alonso is making some moves back in the field – he’s up to sixth. Rosberg is back on the track and up to third, behind Hamilton and Vettel.
Updated
Lap 39: Rosberg will lose track position to Vettel and Verstappen here, so it’s Hamilton 1, Vettel 2, Verstappen 3. The virtual safety car is ending at the end of this lap. Hamilton will have to stay out.
Lap 38: The virtual safety car comes out so that the Force India of Hulkenberg can be removed. Rosberg decides to pit.
Lap 37: Jenson Button, amid all that, has edged up to seventh. Rosberg still leads from Hamilton and Vettel. Ricciardo is persevering after that coming-together with Hulkenburg, and he’s overhauled by his team-mate Kvyatt, who’s now fifth.
Sainz is under investigation for speeding in the pit lane and receives a five-second penalty.
Lap 36: Rosberg is not pulling clear here, and Hamilton’s still very much in contention. Hulkenburg and Ricciardo collide as the former tries to make a move and skids wide and HULKENBURG IS OUT OF THE RACE.
Lap 35: There are cracking little contests going on all over the place here. Vettel suffers a bit of a lock-up going into turn one – he’s in third, behind Hamilton in second and Rosberg first. And now Verstappen overtakes Ricciardo, who’s now toiling, to take fourth place.
Lap 34: Vettel takes on Ricciardo on turn one and goes back into third again. Verstappen is also threatening Kvyat, who started this race well, and moves above him into fifth. Kvyat careers off. Hulkenburg is going well in sixth.
Lap 33: Vettel overtakes Kvyat on turn one to move back into fourth, and he doesn’t have to stop again. Then he tries to move on Ricciardo and succeeds on the second attempt and goes into third. Ricciardo fights back and regains third place on the next turn. What a little battle this is. Rosberg still leads from Hamilton.
Lap 32: And we’re back in business at the end of this lap. Hamilton sounds unhappy, voicing concerns about slippiness.
Lap 31: And still the safety car dictates proceedings, as we wait for the back markers to be got out of the way. To recap, Rosberg still leads from Hamilton, and Ricciardo, with Kvyat fourth and Vettel fifth.
Lap 30: The safety car is still out there, so the relative lull continues.
Lap 29: Vettel lost a place through going into the pits just there, but he’s looking menacing as he moves back into fifth. If his latest tyre change works, things could get interesting. The offending bollard is finally removed from the track, but is there another part of it still out there, causing bother?
Lap 28: The proper safety car is out, as a result of Eriksson’s stoppage, so here’s where we are at halfway: 1 Rosberg, 2 Hamilton, 3 Ricciardo, 4 Kvyat, 5 Verstappen. Talk from the Mercedes team that Hamilton’s problems stem from a lack of rear grip. Hamilton himself is talking about having no “real grip out here”.
Lap 27: Rosberg still leads from Hamilton. As they were on pole, but that conceals the drama we’ve had in the first half of this race. Five cars have now pulled out – Grosjean, Stevens, Bottas, Massa and Raikkonen. Marcus Eriksson, who’s stopped, looks like becoming a sixth.
Lap 26: Vettel is coming strong here, and Hamilton responds and moves in front of Ricciardo again in second. Rosberg still leads. Raikkonen’s recovery was only a brief one – he’s been told he’s got to retire.
Updated
Lap 25: It’s as you were, as Rosberg stretches his advantage to nine seconds.
Lap 24: Vettel is putting real pressure on Kvyatt, and it pays off when he passes him to move into fourth. Raikkonen, meanwhile, has managed to keep going after skidding off earlier. There’s now a six-second gap out front as Rosberg powers ahead.
Lap 23: Another new fastest lap of the race has been set by Nico Hulkenburg, who records a 1:46. If it stays like this, the gap between Hamilton and Rosberg will be down to 63 points. Rosberg leads from Ricciardo, with Hamilton third.
Lap 22: Rosberg overcomes Ricciardo, who had started to wobble, to take the lead. Hamilton has another go at overhauling Kvyatt but locks down and can’t manage it. Vettel’s coming strongly in fifth too. This is a proper race.
Lap 21: Ricciardo leads, Hamilton tries to overhaul Kvyat for third place but is held off. Rosberg retains second.
Lap 20: Ricciardo also pits in a three-second stop, and Rosberg and then Kvyat also go into the pits. Kimi Raikkonen is out of the race, it seems, after skidding into the gravel. Jenson Button meanwhile has just set the fastest lap of the race, which is immediately eclipsed by Vettel’s 1.58
Lap 19: Jenson Button, back in 13th, had also changed to slicks just before Hamilton did. Others are now following. Out on the track, Ricciardo leads from Rosberg and Kvyat. How can Hamilton respond now?
Lap 18: Ricciardo still leads and there’s a proper ding-dong between Rosberg and Hamilton starting on turn 12 and Rosberg overtakes him! Hamilton comes in for a change of tyres to slicks.
Updated
Lap 17: Verstappen takes on Vettel and moves above him into sixth. But then he overdoes it and Vettel overtakes again to reclaim that top six place. It’s a fearsome old battle here and they’re struggling for grip. Ricciardo still leads.
Lap 16: Rosberg now tries to take Hamilton on, and the Briton is struggling a little. Ricciardo still leads, from Hamilton, with Rosberg third and Kvyat fourth.
Lap 15: Ricciardo makes a move on Hamilton again coming out of turn one, but Hamilton holds him off for now, but this is good stuff from the Australian and Ricciardo takes the lead! It’s been on the cards.
Updated
Lap 14: Hamilton’s Mercedes has too much power for Ricciardo on the straights, it seems, but the Red Bull driver is hanging in there.
Lap 13: Hamilton is still serenely out in front, from Ricciardo (who sets the fastest lap here), then Rosberg and then Kvyat. Perez is fifth. Vettel sixth
Lap 12: Grosjean’s back in the pits for a second time, and out of the race, hampered by that melee with Bottas early on. Sebastian Vettel, in sixth, is hard on Perez’s tail ahead of him. Kvyat takes on Rosberg and goes too wide in doing so, messes it up and Ricciardo goes ahead of him in third. And then he’s up into second, showing his team-mate how to do it
Lap 11: They’re going slower in these dry conditions than in the stormy chaos of earlier. The top four remains the same though. Here’s a timings update
Lap 10: The leaders are still clinging to the 1.57 mark on each lap. Kvyat moves up on Rosberg a little, but he can’t quite get close enough to overhaul him on turn one at ther start of lap 11
Lap 9: Hamilton and Rosberg now leading a Mercedes one-two, and beginning to stretch ahead. The two drivers are going out very wide to cool their tyres down - change due soon?
Lap 8: The Virtual Safety Car ending message comes up, and we’re back in the game, and Rosberg overtakes Ricciardo to move into third. Now Rosberg’s on Kvyat’s tail and overhauls him into second , behind Hamilton. It’s a great contest between these two though as Kvyat tries to take him on at a hairpin. Hamilton still leads.
Lap 7: Bottas is now out of the race – it’s not been his day at all. The safety car remains. Just before the safety car came out, Kvyat made a concerted attempt at an overtake on Hamilton, but it’s as you were.
Lap 6: This safety car interlude at least gives us a chance to catch our breath and sum up: Grosjean, Alonso, Rossi, Nasr and Bottas have all had to pit already, Stevens is out. Hamilton leads from Kvyat, Ricciardo third and Rosberg fourth.
Updated
Lap 5: Ricciardo is also lurking with intent in third. Sainz nicks up two places on the turn into ninth, as the virtual safety car comes into play, with debris on the track.
Lap 4: Reruns of Hamilton’s first-turn move show the Briton barely turning the steering wheel, as Rosberg careeered wide. Hmm. Earlier, an all-Sauber collision forced Nasr to pit. He took the opportunity to switch to soft tyres. Hamilton still leads from Kvyat, who’s driving really well.
Lap 3: Hamilton retains his lead, Kvyat second, Ricciardo third, Rosberg fourth. Kvyat is in DRS range of Hamilton though, just 0.7sec behind
Lap 2: Sainz, who started last, has moved past all the chaos into 10th place. Kvyat sets the fastest time of the race on lap 2. Hamilton still leads him though
Lap 1: The track appears to be drying out fast, Hamilton forces Rosberg wide and Hamilton takes the lead on the first turn! Rosberg’s losing places already. Kvyat moves into second. The Red Bulls lead the assault on the Briton. Rosberg drops back to fifth but moves back past Ricciardo into fourth. Alonso seems to have collided with Massa at the back. Bottas is already having a change.
Updated
And they’re driving.
Updated
Valtteri Bottas has also had a five-place penalty because he had to replace the gearbox, forcing him back to 16th.
Time for a topical anthem-and-sport-bodies’-hubris gag:
Overheard on Mercedes team radio from Rosberg: “There’s something wrong with the front tyres..” “Sounds like they’re just cold,” comes the response from the team. Rosberg is looking anxious.
And here’s the US national anthem, being rather over-emotively warbled it must be said:
News: Sainz will start the race, despite crashing in qualifying. Toro Rosso have fixed up his car and made it race-ready.
“Stars and stripes, blondes and brunettes,” chirps Martin Brundle, channeling his inner Partridge as he ambles past two predictably under-dressed women carrying the US flag on his pre-race wander. Sir Jackie Stewart says he’d be “very happy to have Lewis join me” as a three-time world champion. Then he accosts a smiling Ricciardo, who predicts “having some slicks on at some point”.
The rain has stopped! Even more so, chinks of sunlight are flickering through. And all this without dry tyres having been used all weekend – the law of sod. It’s looking like a two-stop race, and one for intermediate tyres. Still pretty wet and slippery out there, natch.
Updated
Preamble
Evening/afternoon everyone, on what could be a momentous day for showbiz’s Lewis Hamilton. Dominant throughout the season, the British driver can wrap up the championship if he beats Nico Rosberg by two points and Sebastian Vettel by nine. But as we know the weather in Austin has rendered things somewhat chaotic in Austin. Rosberg has pole, after today’s delayed qualifying, ahead of Hamilton and the ever-chirpy Daniel Ricciardo, whose upbeat outlook are agreeably conveyed by m’colleague Giles Richards here.
But though Hamilton is a more than proficient driver in the wet, such has been the severity of these weather conditions that, frankly, anything could happen. Remarkably, Carlos Sainz Sr was the only driver to crash in qualifying this morning but this is not going to be a race for the faint-hearted.
By the sounds, Hamilton isn’t too stressed out – “There are four races left so it is not do or die this weekend,” he said after qualifying. It’s surely only a matter of time before the retention of his crown is confirmed, along perhaps with the apparently-still-significant Sports Personality of the Year gong. Though he also told Sky “it’s going to be one of the hardest of races”.
And with the sport going through one of its prolonged bouts of soul-searching on its future, Hamilton – a three-time winner in the States – is precisely the sort of dude a race such as the US GP, and F1 in general, need, according to a characteristically brash interview from race supremo Bobby Epstein in the week. “Fans relate to human beings, not metal,” he gushed. “Hollywood is based in America … This is the centre of the entertainment business. Formula One has some great personalities and we shouldn’t hold them back. They are the people who sell tickets. Lewis has recognised that and he’s got outside the traditional comfort zone for some people in F1. I think it’s great. We need more of that. He’s a personality. Cars don’t have the same personality.” Well spotted.
Among those to have tut-tutted about Hamilton’s celebrity lifestyle earlier in the year were Damon Hill, though he himself wasn’t averse to a bit of gadding about on TV back in the day...
Anyway, enough of that. Here’s how they line up after qualifying:
Updated
