[ad_1]
Lewis Hamilton came close to a record win for Michael Schumacher after winning a spectacular Tuscan Grand Prix that was red flagged twice.
Hamilton claimed his 90th career victory, taking the checkered flag 4.8 seconds ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the other Mercedes at Mugello.
London-born Thai Alexander Albon finished third to claim his first podium. Hamilton also secured a bonus point for the fastest lap to increase his qualifying lead to 55 points.
The race came to a first stop on lap nine after a jaw-dropping four-car crash, prompting Romain Grosjean to accuse then-leader Bottas of “wanting to kill him” at the safety car restart.
Bottas was controlling the pace to prevent Hamilton, whom he had beaten at the start line, from getting into the opening corner.
But the drivers behind were too eager to hit the gas. In the middle of the pack, rookie Nicholas Latifi stepped on the gas but then had to brake dramatically.
A concertina effect followed with Antonio Giovinazzi hitting the Williams driver’s back. McLaren’s Carlos Sainz then hit Giovinazzi with the Italian driver sent into the air.
Haas driver Kevin Magnussen was also eliminated in the dramatic accident with all four cars ending up in the barriers along the pit straight. Fortunately, the quartet escaped without injury.
“That was fucking stupid of whoever was at the front,” shouted Grosjean over the radio. “Do they want to kill us or what? This is the worst I’ve ever seen.”
For the second time in as many Sundays, the race was stopped to deal with debris and there was a 26-minute delay.
The safety car had been deployed before after only two corners when Pierre Gasly became the meat of a Kimi Raikkonen-Grosjean sandwich.
Verstappen, who was sliding back through the group after losing power, was kicked from behind. He ended up on the gravel with Gasly.
Sebastian Vettel also lost his front wing after there was little he could do to prevent Sainz from turning.
After the dramatic initial exchanges, six drivers had already retired and soon became seven with Esteban Ocon unable to continue in his struggling Renault.
The first red flag period led to a halting start, but after a poor breakout in the first round, Hamilton made no mistake in the second, moving in the wake of Bottas before taking the lead on the outside of the opening turn.
On the occasion of Ferrari’s 1,000th race, Charles Leclerc had moved from fifth to third, but it wasn’t long before his weak machinery was exposed and he fell back in order.
👀 A long-term view and close-up of the crash that brought the remaining drivers to the pits
It’s the first time we’ve had a red flag in consecutive races since 2011: Monaco followed by Canada.#TuscanGP 🇮🇹 # F1 pic.twitter.com/Z2QT1k1ckE
– Formula 1 (@ F1) September 13, 2020
Up front, Hamilton was in control and looking for an easy win after taking a seven-second lead over Bottas, but on lap 43 the race came to a halt for the second time.
Lance Stroll lost control of his Racing Point on the second Arrabbiata and crashed into the tire wall. Stroll, who was in fourth place, sustained serious damage to his car in the accident, which was caused by a puncture to the left front, but the Canadian emerged from his cabin unscathed.
Stroll’s crashed car was removed, the tire barrier repaired, and after a 23-minute stop, there was a third outing on the most hectic of the afternoons.
Hamilton ran away from his blocks to keep his lead, but Bottas slipped behind Daniel Ricciardo. The Finn edged out Ricciardo on the next lap, but his best chance of beating Hamilton to the flag was over.
Albon then struggled to pass Ricciardo at Turn 1 with eight laps remaining to claim his first top-three finish on his 30th attempt.
Ferrari completed a miserable afternoon with Leclerc and Vettel finishing 9th and 10th out of just 12 qualified riders. Leclerc moved up to eighth after Raikkonen was given a five-second penalty. Ricciardo was fourth ahead of Sergio Pérez and British driver Lando Norris.
[ad_2]