How Did Lewis Hamilton’s 2018 Japanese Grand Prix Win Destroy Sebastian Vettel’s Title Hopes?

“Sebastian Vettel! He has been leading… from almost start to finish, but now is out of this race!” Many view the 2018 German Grand Prix as the moment when Sebastian Vettel lost the 2018 championship. That certainly is true as his crash at Hockenheim was a pivotal moment when the world title lead switched hands. Although, even after that, Vettel had chances to come back at Lewis Hamilton to clinch the title. But Hamilton ensured he tightened the leash to get his 5th world title & the 2018 Japanese GP played a crucial part in this battle.

Coming into the 2018 race at Suzuka, Hamilton had a championship lead of 50 points over Vettel. To give perspective, before the German GP, Sebastian was at 171 points with an 8-point lead over Lewis. Thus, except for winning in Belgium, he couldn’t cut back on Hamilton’s lead & the Japanese GP was going to further worsen his situation.

Sebastian Vettel’s under the radar Nightmare at the 2018 Japanese GP

Languishing at 264 points behind Hamilton’s 331, Sebastian Vettel already was under the championship fight pressure in Japan. This points gap had swung big time in the Mercedes maestro’s favor to give him a cushion & it just amplified further. Vettel qualified a lowly 9th for the prestigious race at Suzuka while Hamilton was on pole.

Seb started 8th due to a grid penalty for you guessed it: Esteban Ocon, but things were not going as per his plan. The German driver trying to make his way through the field, caught Max Verstappen on Lap 8 of the race according to Formula 1’s race highlights on YouTube. As he attempted a move on the inside through the Spoon corner, the duo collided, causing Vettel’s Ferrari to take damage & spin out of control. It was chaos & Seb certainly would have felt his championship hopes spinning out for the worst as his SF71-H did.

Verstappen carried on in 3rd place somehow, but the 4-time champion had to make a steep recovery from the back of the field. The Ferrari man ensured to do damage control & finished P6, but that was another 17-point swing in Lewis Hamilton’s favor. Talking about Hamilton, he was breaking no sweat at the forefront of the field as he led & controlled the race brilliantly to take home the full 25 points.

Read More: What Does Sebastian Vettel’s Life After F1 Retirement Look Like?

Mercedes had a dominant weekend in Japan that year as they got a 1-2 finish with Valtteri Bottas fending off the charging Verstappen for P2. With a 67-point lead, Lewis knew the championship was his to lose. In the battle of the 4-time champions wanting to get the 5th, the 2018 Japanese GP could have been the final nail in the coffin for the Hamilton-Vettel battle. Regardless, it is the Hockenheim race that defines this championship perfectly.

How was Hockenheim 2018 so pivotal in making Lewis Hamilton a 5x champion ahead of Vettel?

The 2018 German GP perhaps embodies the 2018 championship battle. Sebastian Vettel led for more than half of the battle & Lewis Hamilton was always the one chasing him. Vettel was looking impeccable as he took a blistering pole position on Saturday in Hockenheim. Meanwhile, Lewis qualified a lowly 14th.

It was going to be a humongous task for Lewis to keep his title rival in check. He made his way through the field & eventually his faithful ally – the rain came to his saving. Sebastian was looking all set to take the victory at his home race, but as the track went damp, the German missed his braking point at Turn 13 & it was all undone! Seb beached his car in the damp gravel & agony surrounded the Hockenheim grandstands.

While Vettel walked in pure devastation after his DNF, Hamilton took the lead of the Grand Prix (yes from 14th on the grid) and recovered to lead home a Mercedes 1-2. It was a first home win for the Silver Arrows too. But there was a sense of despair as over 100,000 German fans knew their home hero had arguably the worst moment of his career.

WATCH THIS STORY | Sebastian Vettel’s Championship Seasons

Lewis Hamilton cherished every moment of Hockenheim 2018 & doubled down on Vettel’s misery in Japan to eventually seal the title a couple of races later in Mexico. Suzuka has always been one of Seb’s favorite tracks, so to lose any hopes of winning the world title was gut-wrenching after what happened on his home soil. What do you think, at which of the two races did Sebastian Vettel lose the 2018 championship?