The Champ Holds Firm

Amid slip-ups by Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton is in command of the F1 title battle at the halfway point of the season.

Twenty-four points! As this issue goes to print, that’s the difference between Mercedes AMG F1’s Lewis Hamilton who sits atop the Formula 1 drivers’ championship points standings and former four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. With 25 points counting for a win and nine rounds remaining in the 21-round calendar that will conclude in Abu Dhabi, all eyes are trained on the mighty Spa-Francorchamps circuit where an F1 car’s speed, braking and handling performance are really put on place.

Germany and Hungary’s Hockenheimring and Hungaroring, respectively, tend to ‘muzzle’ an F1 car in comparison, but both races threw up their fair share of drama and twists in the title battle between Mercedes and Ferrari.

In front of his home crowd, and despite starting from pole, Vettel seemed to have his Singapore 2017 moment – translation: an ill-timed mistake with possibly huge repercussions – when he crashed out of the lead of the German Grand Prix in wet conditions.