2015 British GP: Hamilton beats Williams and the rain

At the 2015 British GP at Silverstone Circuit, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) claimed a home win from pole position. Nico Rosberg finished second, with Sebastian Vettel third for Ferrari. For a long time it looked like a win for Williams. In the end, two pit stops decided the race: Hamilton's undercut in the first stop window and his switch to intermediates just as the rain arrived.

The field was already one car short before the start. Felipe Nasr was unable to start in his Sauber because of a gearbox problem. When the lights went out, both Mercedes got away poorly. Felipe Massa rocketed into the lead from third on the grid, and Valtteri Bottas got past Rosberg. Nico Hülkenberg also made a lightning start in his Force India, climbing from grid position 9 to 5th.

Further back, there was contact. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) touched Romain Grosjean's car, which pushed Grosjean into his team-mate Pastor Maldonado. The race was over for both Lotus F1 drivers. Taking avoiding action, the two McLaren cars of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button also collided. Button retired, while Alonso pitted for a new nose. The Safety Car was deployed.

After the restart, Hamilton tried to pass Massa around the outside. The Brazilian held his line, however, and Hamilton locked up and ran wide off the track. Bottas seized the chance to get past Hamilton as well, giving Williams a one-two ahead of both Mercedes. Bottas then attacked his team-mate and said over the radio: “I have better pace.” (Motorsport Magazine). Williams initially held the two back from racing each other. By the time Bottas was finally allowed to attack, he could no longer put Massa under serious pressure.

Most drivers apparently planned just one stop, whereas Ferrari committed to two early on. According to Motorsport Magazine, Mercedes at one point faked an imminent stop by sending its mechanics out into the pit lane. The idea was to lure Williams into stopping early, but they didn't react. The FIA later warned the teams about this tactic (Wikipedia).

The decisive moment came on lap 19. Hamilton pitted from third and had the upper hand after his out-lap. Massa stopped a lap later, Bottas on lap 21. Thanks to a strong out-lap and a quick stop from his crew, Hamilton rejoined ahead of both Williams. He led from lap 22. Rosberg was less fortunate: he spent a long time stuck behind the Williams and was still fourth after his stop.

Rain arrived in the second half of the race. It fell unevenly – heaviest at Luffield, according to Motorsport Magazine, while other sections stayed dry. On the damp track, Rosberg was clearly quicker than the Williams on his fresher tyres. He passed Bottas first and then Massa on lap 41 (FIA). After that, he quickly closed in on Hamilton.

Kimi Räikkönen was among the first to switch to intermediates, on lap 38. That was too early: the track wasn't yet wet enough, the tyres wore out quickly and he had to pit a third time. Hamilton picked the right moment, taking intermediates on lap 43, just before the rain intensified. Vettel stopped on the same lap. Rosberg, Massa and Bottas stayed out on slicks for one more lap and lost a lot of time. Rosberg led only briefly on lap 44; after that Hamilton was back in front and extended his lead. According to Wikipedia, he crossed the line 10.956 seconds clear. Hamilton later said of his decision: “It's maybe the first time in my life I've called it right.” (Motorsport Magazine).

The biggest winner of the wet phase was Vettel. He pitted in fifth and was third three laps later, ahead of both Williams.

• Felipe Nasr (Sauber): gearbox problem, did not start.
• Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado (Lotus F1): crash on lap 1, triggered by Ricciardo's contact with Grosjean.
• Jenson Button (McLaren): collision with team-mate Alonso on lap 1.
• Max Verstappen (Toro Rosso): spun into the gravel after 3 laps.
• Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull): electrical failure after 21 laps.
• Carlos Sainz (Toro Rosso): electrical failure after 31 laps. He stopped on track, which led to a Virtual Safety Car period.

Roberto Merhi (Manor Marussia) gained the most places: eight, from grid position 20 to 12th. His team-mate Will Stevens finished 13th. Despite stopping for a new nose on the opening lap, Alonso went from grid position 17 to 10th. That was his first championship point since returning to McLaren. Force India got both cars into the points: Hülkenberg finished seventh, Sergio Pérez ninth. Daniil Kvyat took 6th place for Red Bull, while Marcus Ericsson narrowly missed out on points in eleventh.

The loser of the day was Williams. Massa and Bottas led a total of 20 laps but ended up 4th and 5th, off the podium. It went even worse for Räikkönen: he started fifth and, because of his premature switch to intermediates, finished only eighth, a lap down.

With his win, Hamilton extended his lead in the 2015 standings. He now had 194 points, 17 more than Rosberg on 177. Vettel was third with 135 points. Bottas, on 77 points, moved past Räikkönen (76) into 4th place. In the constructors' standings, Mercedes had 371 points, ahead of Ferrari (211) and Williams (151).

For Hamilton it was his third win at Silverstone and the 38th of his career. He also broke a 45-year-old record held by Jackie Stewart for the most consecutive Grands Prix with at least one lap led. Mercedes put both drivers on the podium for the ninth race in a row, equalling a Ferrari record from 1952/53 (Wikipedia). The race also showed that the Mercedes could be beaten when they made poor starts. But the team made up for it with its strategy and fast pit stops.