Lewis Hamilton is poised to become a four-time Formula One champion this season. Will he be able to pull it off in the Mexican Grand Prix?
After winning the United States Grand Prix for his ninth victory of the season and fifth in the last six races, three-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton leads the drivers standings by 66 points over the only other driver still eligible to win the 2017 championship, four-time Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel.
With three races to go in the 2017 Formula One season in Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi, there are a maximum of 75 points still on the table for each driver, with 25 points going to the winner of each of the remaining three races.
Lewis Hamilton has clinched the win tiebreaker over Sebastian Vettel since Hamilton has won nine races so far this season while Vettel has won only four and just three races remain on the 2017 schedule, so the reason that Vettel is still alive in the championship hunt right now because he is within 74 points of Hamilton.
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With Sebastian Vettel trailing Lewis Hamilton by 66 points in the drivers standings, there is still a slight chance that he can rally to win this year’s championship. However, that would truly take a miracle and it’s a pretty safe bet at this point that Hamilton will end up being the 2017 Formula One champion.
The real question here is whether or not Hamilton can secure his fourth career Formula One championship in the Mexican Grand Prix, which is the next race on the schedule. He certainly has a shot at doing so, but will he be able to pull it off?
Lewis Hamilton clinching the 2017 championship in the Mexican Grand Prix: BUY
Here is a huge list of scenarios by which Lewis Hamilton can clinch his fourth career Formula One championship in the Mexican Grand Prix, copied from an earlier Beyond the Flag article.
- If Lewis Hamilton would win the race, he would gain 25 points and be ahead of Sebastian Vettel by at least 73 points in the standings even if Vettel would finish the race in 2nd place and gain 18 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 2nd place, he would gain 18 points and be ahead of Sebastian Vettel by at least 59 points even if Vettel would win the race and gain 25 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 3rd place, he would gain 15 points and be ahead of Sebastian Vettel by at least 56 points even if Vettel would win the race and gain 25 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 4th place, he would gain 12 points and be ahead of Sebastian Vettel by at least 53 points even if Vettel would win the race and gain 25 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 5th place, he would gain 10 points and be ahead of Sebastian Vettel by at least 51 points even if Vettel would win the race and gain 25 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 6th place, he would gain 8 points and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 2nd place or lower and gain 18 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 56 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 7th place, he would gain 6 points and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 2nd place or lower and gain 18 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 54 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 8th place, he would gain 4 points and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 2nd place or lower and gain 18 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 52 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 9th place, he would gain 2 points and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 2nd place or lower and gain 18 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 50 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 10th place, he would gain 1 point and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 3rd place or lower and gain 15 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 52 points.
- If Lewis Hamilton would finish the race in 11th place or lower, he would gain 0 points and would need Sebastian Vettel to finish in 3rd place or lower and gain 15 points or less so that Hamilton would be ahead of Vettel by at least 51 points.
Given the fact that he has won five of the last six races and finished in 2nd place in the race that he did not win, it is highly unlikely that Lewis Hamilton will leave the Mexican Grand Prix a three-time Formula One champion. Instead, he will likely leave it trailing only the great Michael Schumacher (7 championships) and Juan Manuel Fangio (5) in terms of career Formula One titles won.
Next: Looking back at Lewis Hamilton's record-setting accomplishment
Lewis Hamilton is in a great position to lock up his fourth career Formula One championship this weekend. Will he be able to seal the deal? Be sure to tune into NBC at 3:00 PM ET on Sunday, October 29th, 2017 for the Mexican Grand Prix live from Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico.