Abu Dhabi GP: Lewis Hamilton leads Max Verstappen in F1 title fight – live!

Lap 42/58 The gap is 14.052s, and it’s not closing quickly enough for Verstappen. But the work Hamilton’s putting into them won’t be good for their health, so it might be that they cost him the time he’s putting in now later on…

Lap 41/58 Hamilton is coming back. He’ll be worried he didn’t pit when the virtual safety car came out, but he didn’t want to sacrifice track position and that’s understandable. Whoever loses will have regrets, and even if that’s Hamilton, it won’t be clear whether doing whatever he didn’t do would’ve changed things. Aaaaarrrggghhhh!

“For the first time in well over a long time I am watching the Grand Prix here with the windows open in balmy Okinawa,” says Rich Tunaley. “Last time I watched may well have been when Auntie used the Chain in its first run of that as its opening track. Hamilton is obviously unworldly. Here’s to him winning this. Truly incredible.”

Lap 40/58 Hamilton leads by 15.605s, telling his team he won’t be able to keep this pace up for the duration. In comms, they think he’s got enough to gold it down … but only if his tyres don’t degrade in a serious way.

Lap 39/58 OH MY DAYS! Verstappen took 0.8 out of Hamilton on that most recent lap, so I guess the question is whether the ability to do that will fade as the tyres age, or if the concurrent fading of Hamilton’s will balance that. Hold on people, because this is going to the last fibre of the wire and I can barely feel my fingers, so who knows how these two kings are feeling!

Lap 38/58 Hamilton now leads by 17.614s, and has to hang in there for 20 laps; can he take 0.8 a lap out of the leader? Out of nowhere, that virtual safety car has made things close!

Lap 37/58 Verstappen, though, has no option but to come in – he hasn’t got the pace to catch Hamilton as is, he needs some racing chicanery, and the virtual safety car-situation means he gets a cheap pit. He’s on hards, and we hear Wolff ask the race organiser not to put out a safety car – a classic Alex Ferguson trying to sway the officials kind of move.

Lap 36/58 “I am grateful I am not in Horner’s shoes,” emails Edwin Innih Imoesi. “Des he pit Max or does he stay put?”

If he does nothing, Verstappen loses, but what’s this? Govinazzi has spun and is blocking the track, so out comes the virtual safety car. That takes time out of the race for Hamilton, who naturally opts to keep going…

Lap 35/58 Lando Norris’ parents will probably have to content themselves with yesterday’s P3 effort; he’s now seventh, trying to struggle back following a horrible start to the race.

Lap 34/58 No movement on Verstappen’s second stop, but surely it’s coming because what else can Red Bull do? The lead is 5.441s now, every lap increasing the work that’ll be necessary to filch the title.

Lap 33/58 Bottas is now down in ninth, and trying to pass Leclerc, sees the door slammed in his Chevy Chase. Hamilton leads by 5.016s.

Lap 32/58 Hamilton’s lead creeps towards five seconds as the natural light drops and the scene looks ever-more colourful and intense – though let’s be real with ourselves about what makes it possible and why it’s so.

Lap 31/58 Hamilton adds a further 0.3s to his lead, but Red Bull know that if they pit well, Verstappen will come out ahead of Bottas … who pits now. That’s a decent gap in which to try something, but whether the new tyres are enough to close a gap of around 24s, or a gap of four seconds and whatever Hamilton’s putative pit takes, remains to be seen – at best.

Lap 30/58 Hamilton sets a fastest lap to take his lead above four seconds, so I imagine he’s been told about the impending second stop and to put his foot down.

Lap 29/58 After as ludicrous a start as we can have anticipated, things have settled, and Red Bull need to try something, anything. And right as I type that, we learn that they’re considering a second pit; I wonder if Hamilton will have to do likewise? The lead is 3.824s.

Lap 28/58 Ach, as Barry Davies would say – that’s a shame. But what a career!

Lap 27/58 Raikkonen’s brakes let him down, the rear axel locked, and he clattered into the side. Meantime, Hamilton increases his lead to 3.737s, but Bottas is 20s behind Verstappen, so not sure he’ll be able to help his teammate.

Lap 26/58 Raikkonen’s front wing is damaged; can he make it to the pit so he can complete his final race?

Lap 25/58 “Maybe an interesting thought,” returns Steve Ditchburn. “Red Bull have shown that you can use your second driver to slow down the opposition so why don’t Mercedes get Bottas to wedge himself between Hamilton and Verstappen and do the same, if only for half a lap. It could make a difference of a few seconds.”

Yup, if Bottas can get in front of Verstappen it’s over.

Lap 24/58 Hamilton leads, followed by Verstappen, Bottas, Perez, Alonso, Gasly, Sainz, Norris, Leclerc, Tsnoda, Ocon, Ricciardo, Latifi, Russell, Giovinazzi, Vettel, Stroll, Raikkonen, Schumacher.

Lap 23/58 Hamilton is stretching away again, 2.446s ahead, and it’s hard to see a way for Verstappen now the lad he’s chasing sets a fastest lap.

Lap 22/58 “Absolute animal,” says the Red Bull radio of Perez, who did a phenomenal job there.

“I’m a Hamilton fan so I may be biased,” admits Joe Balfour, “but where could Lewis go? Max went in too hard, Lewis couldn’t turn left without hitting him. If he stops, he gets hit from behind. Max knew what he was doing, just didn’t expect Lewis to take the route he did. Should Lewis have slowed right up to allow Max back in? Maybe, but the distance between the two after Lewis got back onto the track and Max came out of the corner was massive and then reduced. So maybe that’s why Lewis was regarded as giving the spaces back? Was hoping for a full on race, but I don’t think Hamilton did anything wrong. Good luck keeping up.”

I’m not sure Hamilton had to go off, and I don’t think he gave back what he took off. But as I keep saying, I see both sides, so maybe status quo is the best solution

Lap 21/58 This is terrific stuff from Perez, holding Hamilton up, and the gap from Hamilton to Verstappen is now 1.241s! He’s hauled his mate back into the race, and though Hamilton finally barrels by, the gap that was over six seconds is now 1.3s! HAVE A LOOK!

Lap 20/58 Hamilton has taken roughly four seconds off Perez, so it probably won’t be long before he’s passed. And the gap is disappearing in chunks now, down to 0.403, while Sainz pits so Verstappen is now in third. And there it is, Hamilton goes by Perez, but Perez saves up energy from his battery to boust right back past with DRS! what a job he’s doing for his mate!

Lap 19/58 “Stuck on sofa outside ladies changing rooms, (my wife is here , I’m not a weirdo), pleads Adam Pope, “with marginal WiFi signal. Your feed is the only thing stopping me from dying slowly from the inside at the moment.”

That’s why we’re here!

Lap 18/58 Sainz has helped Hamilton out here, sticking in front of Verstappen, while Perez is doing likewise for Verstappen, now 5.579s in front of Hamilton.

Lap 17/58 On the turn seven shenaniga, Mercedes reckon Verstappen forced Hamilton off. Though they didn’t touch, that’s because Hamilton took evasive action, is how they see it. Again, I’m not sure: I see both sides, but Verstappen has been unfortunate.

Lap 16/58 Verstappen will be wanting Perez to try and slow Hamilton down; presumably he’ll just stay out there as long as possible, trying to do a job for his teammate. Verstappen is closing on Sainz, and before long he’ll be back directly behind Hamilton.

Lap 15/58 Now Hamilton pits, so Perez leads the race and here comes Hamilton! He comes out second, trailing by 11.513s, with Verstappen five or so seconds and two places behind him.

Lap 14/58 Verstappen pits! That should be his sole stop of the race and where’s he going to come out? He’s fifth, perhaps as a consequence, Leclerc drives off and loses a place to Tsunoda! Meantime, Verstappen passes Norris, and now trails by 27.525s.

Lap 13/58 Verstappen will have to pit soon – that’ll be the next major event, and his tyres are already giving him aggravation, the consequence of a locked-tyre error yesterday, when he didn’t even need to be out there. That’s the thing with sport, it’s often won in the details, and the details often amount to thinking clearly at all times.

Lap 12/58 Hamilton is lapping a second faster now, leading by 4.686s, and it’s really hard to see a way for Verstappen now. Unless Hamilton makes a serious error, or his car fails him, or something strange happens behind them that means a safety car is necessary, this feels like it’s did.

Lap 11/58 “Seems to me that Max only stayed on the track because he actually hit Lewis and used his car to stop leaving the track.,” emails Steve Ditchburn. “However, I really don’t think that Lewis gave back what he gained. One might say that Max set the standard for this sort of behaviour so just maybe he deserved the outcome.”

I know what you mean, but you’ve got to treat each case on its merits and Verstappen definitely had the arse-end of that. But the reality is that it was marginal, so it’s hard to bitch too much about the call, whatever it was. Though of course we’ll enjoy the efforts made.

Lap 10/58 Pirelli reckon Verstappen’s tyres, supplied by them, work for about 15 laps. But Red Bull will be able to use Perez, in third, to try and hold up Hamilton when he comes out of the pits

Lap 9/58 If Verstappen has to pit first, he’ll have a problem because the field is pretty close together, so he’ll get stuck in traffic if that’s soon. Hamilton’s mediums seem to have more pace than his softs too, which is to say that Red Bull are in shtuck.

Lap 8/58 Jenson Button doesn’t understand the regulations, noting that in Brazil both men went off the track while here, Veratappen stayed on. Who thought this was going to be simple? Meantime, Hamilton leads by 2.309s, and pPerez by 5.593s.

Lap 7/58 More from the stewards, who think Hamilton handed back what he took and Verstappen forced the position. I’m still not sure – I’m leaning towards Horner’s view, but Rosberg thinks Verstappen lunged, though he does also think the distance was’t returned.

Lap 6/58 Horner is as delighted as you’d expect. He’s “a little bit shocked” and “not best pleased”, saying it’s not like Brazil, when Verstappen escaped, and a “total lack of consistency”. David Croft presses him, saying the drivers were told to stay within the white lines, Verstappen did that, and now he “has to do it the hard way”.

Lap 5/58 Hamilton leads by 1.904s, followed by Verstappen, Perez, Sainz, Norris, Leclerc, Tsunoda, Bottas, Ocon, Ricciardo. That’s our top 10, for all that it matters.

Lap 4/58 I doubt we’ve heard the last of this, and the stewards must’ve thought that Verstappen forced Hamilton off the track. I don’t know, it looked to me like he outpaced him on the straight, took the apex, and held it. In the meantime, Hamilton leads by about 1.6s.

Lap 3/58 Red Bull aren’t happy, but in the eyes of the stewards, Hamilton slowed down enough to return the extra metres he gave when taking the escape road. That seems a reach to me, I must say.

Lap 2/58 Hamilton leads by a second and a bit, but that moment at turn seven will surely be the subject of an investigation: did Hamilton cut the corner? What happened was Verstappen tried to take him on the straight, he went off onto the escape road, thereby coming back in front!