DHL Fastest Lap Award: FORMULA 1 2018 ROLEX BRITISH GRAND PRIX

Race winner Sebastian Vettel crowns magnificent performance in British GP at Silverstone with DHL Fastest Lap.

Sebastian Vettel takes DHL Fastest Lap at Silverstone

The 69th edition of the British Grand Prix kept Formula 1 fans on the edge of their seats throughout. As an exciting race with many dramatic twists and turns came to an end, Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel claimed a victory that extends his lead over Lewis Hamilton in the world championship to eight points.

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Hamilton started from pole position, but Vettel’s getaway off the line was much better as the lights went out and he took the lead. His British rival then collided with Vettel's Ferrari teammate Kimi Räikkönen and Hamilton dropped back down to the rear of the field. Vettel seemed a certain winner for much of the race, as Hamilton had to fight his way back to the front, but things got really dramatic in the closing stages.

The safety car was sent out on track when Sauber driver Marcus Ericsson crashed. Vettel and Räikkönen pitted to swap tires, but Bottas and Hamilton stayed out. Bottas went into the lead, followed by Vettel, Hamilton and Räikkönen. An action-packed push over the ten laps to the finish line ensued with success going to Vettel.

Bottas managed to fend off the Ferrari driver’s attacks for a couple of laps, but Vettel got the upper hand in the end and overtook the Mercedes driver. The German made clear his intent to win the race on Lap 47 when he burned the DHL Fastest Lap into Silverstone’s asphalt with a time of 1:30.696.

There was no stopping Vettel once he’d got past Bottas. He quickly drew away from his rivals to take the 51st Grand Prix victory of his career. To his rear, Hamilton and Räikkönen also passed Bottas to join him on the podium.

"Today during the first stint I probably pushed too much on the Soft tires, but during the second one I had everything under control", Vettel said. "The Safety Car made everything more exciting, but even more tricky. However, the strategy with the tires was great and at the end we got a fantastic win as a team. I really enjoyed this race and I am happy for me and for the team."

Fastest laps: FORMULA 1 2018 ROLEX BRITISH GRAND PRIX

• 01 Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) 1:30.696 - on Lap 47
• 02 Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari) 1:30.795 - on Lap 51
• 03 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1:31.245 - on Lap 52
• 04 Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 1:31.377 - on Lap 43
• 05 Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) 1:31.589 - on Lap 46
• 06 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:32.007 - on Lap 42
• 07 Nico Hülkenberg (Renault) 1:33.405 - on Lap 48
• 08 Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso) 1:33.465 - on Lap 48
• 09 Sergio Pérez (Force India) 1:33.472 - on Lap 48
• 10 Fernando Alonso (McLaren) 1:33.482 - on Lap 52

History: Fastest laps at the FORMULA 1 BRITISH GRAND PRIX

With his DHL Fastest Lap of 1:30.696, Sebastian Vettel narrowly missed beating Lewis Hamilton’s lap record of 1:30.621 posted in 2017 at Silverstone. This was Vettel’s first fastest lap of the season and the 34th of his career, putting the Ferrari driver in fifth place on the list of all-time fastest laps behind Hamilton (38) and ahead of Nigel Mansell (30).

Bottas and Ricciardo lead DHL Fastest Lap Award

With three successes each to their names, Valtteri Bottas and Daniel Ricciardo continue to jointly lead the overall classification of the DHL Fastest Lap Award. Max Verstappen is hot on their heels with two fastest laps. Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen have posted one DHL Fastest Lap each.