French Grand Prix 2019: Lewis Hamilton powers to victory to stretch F1 championship lead over Valtteri Bottas
Re-live all the action from the French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Lewis Hamilton dominated from start to finish to win a second consecutive French Grand Prix and take his fourth victory in a row, leaving all of his rivals in his wake at Paul Ricard.
Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas finished a lengthy 18 second behind the championship leader, and the Finn nearly lost second place as Ferrari's Charles Leclerc had a run at him into the final corner as he struggled to reheat his tyres following a late virtual safety car, though the chequered flag came one lap too soon for the Monogasque.
Max Verstappen kept Sebastian Vettel at bay to take fourth, with Carlos Sainz impressing for McLaren in sixth. However, a hydraulic problem saw Lando Norris lose seventh on the final lap as Daniel Ricciardo, Kimi Raikkonen and Nico Hulkenberg flashed past to relegate him to 10th. Re-live the action below.
What time does it start?
The French Grand Prix takes place on Sunday 23 June at 2:10pm BST (3:10 CET).
How can I watch it?
The race will be shown live on Sky Sports F1 from 12:30pm BST.
Starting grid
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1min 28.319secs
2 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP 1:28.605
3 Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 1:28.965
4 Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:29.409
5 Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1:29.418
6 Carlos Sainz (Spa) McLaren 1:29.522
7 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:29.799
8 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Renault 1:29.918
9 Pierre Gasly (Fra) Red Bull 1:30.184
10 Antonio Giovinazzi (Ita) Alfa Romeo Racing 1:33.420
11 Alexander Albon (Tha) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:30.461
12 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Alfa Romeo Racing 1:30.533
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 1:30.544
14 Sergio Perez (Mex) Racing Point 1:30.738
15 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1:31.440
16 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 1:31.626
17 Lance Stroll (Can) Racing Point 1:31.726
18 Robert Kubica (Pol) Williams 1:33.205
19 Daniil Kvyat (Rus) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:31.564 + 10-place grid penalty
20 George Russell (Gbr) Williams 1:32.789 + 25-place grid penalty
Lap 53: Bottas got held up in traffic, and that's given Leclerc a sniff of second place. Meanwhile Ricciardo takes seventh from Norris!
Chequered flag: The last-lap battle between Norris, Ricciardo, Raikkonen and Hulkenberg descended into chaos, as Riccardo sent one down the outside of the McLaren heading into the Mistral chicane. Ricciardo ran wide and pushed Norris off the track, who then saw Raikkonen and Hulkenberg come flashing by, and Ricciardo again ran off the track to try get by the Alfa Romeo. In the end Ricciardo too seventh ahead of Raikkonen in eighth, Hulkenberg in ninth and Norris a gut-wrenching 10th, but stewards are investigating what happened there.
Hamilton:
"It's definitely been a really good weekend. I've been racing a long time but it never gets old and it's such a challenge out there. I just love trying to find the edge and getting on top of this machine, and I couldn't do it without all of these guys and the guys in the factory, we're trying to make history together. I'm so proud to be part of this team.
"It's still a warm day out here and I'm sweating, and it's a bumpy track. It';s actually a really good track and there's a lot of difficult places out there.
"It wasn't easy at all, you've got to manage these cars and it's all about wear, temperature and saving where you can. I had a few blisters and I remembered that last year Lance Stroll had a blowout so I was a bit nervous about that.
Bottas:
"Not much happening from me today, I had my best start but so did Lewis. He was faster today and I need to have a look where it didn't go right. That's something I need to have a look at as he was strong today and yesterday, but he;s not unbeatable, I know that."
Leclerc:
"I gave it everything. The first run I was good but they were too quick, and the second stint was all about managing.. I think Valtteri had trouble switching his tyres on again after the VSC and I caught him but it was one lap too short. In the last two laps I definitely thought I could get him, but it was just no enough."
Results
1. Lewis Hamilton
2. Valttero Bottas +18.056s
3. Charles Leclerc +18.985s
4. Max Verstappen +34.905s
5. Sebastian Vettel +62.796s
6. Carlos Sainz +95.462s
7. Daniel Ricciardo +1 lap
8. Kimi Raikkonen +1 lap
9. Nico Hulkenberg +1 lap
10. Lando Norris +1 lap
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments