Hamilton holds off Vettel to win in Belgium

LEWIS HAMILTON cut his championship deficit to Sebastian Vettel to just seven points with a closely fought victory in the Belgian Grand Prix.

Hamilton rarely led Vettel by more than two seconds in a tense battle until a late safety car added further jeopardy.

As all the drivers pitted, Ferrari put the fastest ultra-soft tyres on Vettel while Mercedes put Hamilton on softs.

But after fending off an attack by the German on the restart, Hamilton took back control and led to the flag.

Hamilton had not been happy with the decision to bring out the safety car, after a collision between the two Force India drivers on the run down the hill from La Source to Eau Rouge.

He said it was “a BS call from the stewards”, clearly worried that with the extra grip from the ultra-soft tyres, Vettel would have an advantage.

For a few seconds after the restart, Hamilton appeared to be in trouble, as Vettel sat right behind him through Eau Rouge and appeared to be lining up to pass the Mercedes up the long Kemmel straight.

But Hamilton — taking part in his 200th race —used all the power advantage of his Mercedes to fend him off and he reeled off two consecutive fastest laps to pull 1.4 seconds clear and give himself a more comfortable margin.

The race settled back into the pattern that had been set soon after the start.

Hamilton was in front, Vettel was more than capable of staying right with him, but in evenly matched cars could not get close enough to attack.

In many ways, the race was a microcosm of the season.

The Mercedes and Ferrari have very different characteristics, excelling in different parts of individual circuits and the advantage swinging one way or another from race to race.

But so tight is the performance between them in general that victories hinge on small twists of fate or tiny details.

In this case, Mercedes’ advantage with their extra engine boost in qualifying, allied to a stellar lap from Hamilton, put the the Englishman on pole. Vettel, equally impressive in qualifying, could manage only second.

On the first lap, just as after the restart, Vettel challenged out of Eau Rouge and towards Les Combes, but Hamilton fended him off, laying the foundations for a crucial win.

Hamilton becomes the first man to win five races this season, with Vettel on four.

Had the Ferrari driver won, Hamilton would have slipped to 21 points adrift, and with Singapore, where Mercedes expect the red cars to dominate, just two races away, it could have been a tough ask to close that.

But now with seven points in it, and Monza next weekend, another race Hamilton has a strong chance to win, the fight remains as finely poised as ever.  — BBC Sport