Formula 1

About the season

The new wider, higher-downforce aerodynamic rules (a 2000mm track width and a taller diffuser) made the cars significantly faster, and 11 lap records fell during the season. Vettel's Ferrari and Hamilton's Mercedes were closely matched all year: Vettel led the standings for 12 races to Hamilton's 8, and both drivers finished with 13 podiums. At the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, running behind the safety car, Vettel ran into the back of Hamilton's car and then deliberately steered into it again, wrongly believing Hamilton had brake-tested him; TV data showed Hamilton had not braked, and Vettel received a 10-second stop-and-go penalty. The Baku incident strained relations between the two teams, and as Ferrari's title challenge faded in the second half of the season, Hamilton ultimately took the championship. Lewis Hamilton won the 2017 Drivers' Championship with 363 points (Mercedes), 46 points ahead of the runner-up. Mercedes won the Constructors' Championship with 668 points, 146 points ahead of the runner-up. Across 20 completed races this season, there were 95 retirements. 5 different drivers won a race this season. Lewis Hamilton took the most race wins, 9 in total. Vettel won the season-opening race, the Australian Grand Prix. The closest finish of the season came at the Russian Grand Prix, with a gap of just 0.617 seconds. The most dominant win of the season came at the Canadian Grand Prix, with a margin of 19.8 seconds. The season's biggest upset win came from Ricciardo at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, starting from grid position 10. The Singapore Grand Prix saw the most retirements of the season, with 8 drivers failing to finish. Vettel made the biggest gain of the season at the Malaysian Grand Prix, from grid position 20 to finishing 4 (up 16 places). Bottas won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the final race of the season.