Sao Paulo, Brazil (SportsNetwork.com) – Nico Rosberg from Mercedes gave his
Formula One title hopes a huge boost by winning Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix
and trimming teammate Lewis Hamilton’s lead in the world championship
standings to 17 points with only one race remaining.
Rosberg held off Hamilton at the finish by 1.4 seconds for his fifth win of
the season and the eighth of his F1 career. He also ended Hamilton’s streak of
five consecutive grand prix victories.
Hamilton, with 10 wins this season, has accumulated 334 points to 317 for
Rosberg. The Nov. 23 season-ending Abu Dhabi will award double the amount of
points, with the race winner collecting 50 points and the second-place
finisher receiving 36. If Hamilton finishes second or better there, regardless
if Rosberg wins, he will clinch his second F1 world championship. His first
title came in 2008, which he clinched by only one point over Felipe Massa in
the season-finale in Brazil.
Massa, a Brazilian, finished third in front of his home crowd. His last
victory occurred in the ’08 Brazilian GP when he drove for Ferrari. Massa is
now in his first season with Williams.
Jenson Button from McLaren finished fourth, while Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel,
the four-time F1 world champion and winner of last year’s Brazilian GP, placed
fifth.
