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Australia to Abu Dhabi... Your epic 2017 F1 season wrap

Abu Dhabi - Valtteri Bottas survived several laps of high-speed pressure from his Mercedes team mate and world champion Lewis Hamilton to claim a memorable victory in Sunday's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Bottas, who started from pole position, led from the lights to the flag apart from a spell following his first pit stop when the four-time champion Briton was in control.

It was his third career victory, all of them recorded since he joined Mercedes to partner the 32-year-old Briton in January following the unexpected exit of 2016 champion Nico Rosberg.

As it happened: 2017 Abu Dhabi GP

20 races, 5 different winners... from Australia to Abu Dhabi we look back on the action-packed 2017 F1 season.

Australia Grand Prix 

Winner: Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap: Kimi Raikkönen (1min26:53)

Sebastian Vettel broke Ferrari's F1 drought with a victory over Hamilton during the season-opening 2017 Australian GP. Prior to the race, Ferrari had not won an F1 race since Vettel's victory in Singapore in 2015. 

With new regulations designed to make cars faster in 2017, Vettel proved Ferrari's extra pace demonstrated in pre-season testing was no fluke with a fantastic race in Melbourne.

China Grand Prix 

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min35:37)

Hamilton claimed his first victory of the 2017 season during the Chinese GP, finishing ahead of Vettel and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. 

It was Hamilton's fifth Chinese GP win and saw him level on points with Vettel in the Drivers' Championship after two races. He claimed Mercedes' 65th win in Shanghai. 

Vettel recovered from a mishap-filled start to finish in second place, 6.2 seconds behind the Mercedes driver.

Bahrain Grand Prix  

Winner: Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min32:79)

Ferrari celebrated its second victory of the season with a fantastic race by Vettel in Bahrain. The race was his 44th win of his career.

Hamilton placed second with team mate Bottas in third. 

The race could have had a different outcome if Hamilton did not receive a five-second penalty for driving too slowly in the its lane and holding up Red Bull's Ricciardo.

Winner: Valtteri Bottas

Fastest lap: Kimi Räikkönen (1min36:84)

Bottas claimed his maiden F1 victory to triumph for Mercedes in a tense 2017 Russian GP.

Bottas, starting from third place on the grid, grabbed the initiative at the start by powering past both Ferraris and into the lead. Hamilton however struggled to finish in fourth.

Four-time champion Vettel finished second ahead of Ferrari team mate Raikkonen who claimed his first podium finish since last year's 2017 Austrian Grand Prix.

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min23:59)

Hamilton bounced back from his Sochi setback when he topped the times for Mercedes during practice ahead of the Spanish GP.

The three-time world champion led the way ahead of Bottas. The Mercedes pair were almost a second clear of the two Ferraris led by Raikkonen ahead of championship leader four-time champion Vettel.



6. Monaco GP

Winner: Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap: Sergio Perez(1min:14:82)

If qualifying was anything to go by at the Monaco GP, then fans were expecting a real treat from the ferrerai drivers as Räikkönen claimed pole of ahead Vettel in P2.

Ferrari grabbed a one-two victory with Vettel winning the race. Red Bull's Riccairdo completed the podium spots.


Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min:14:55)

It was Mercedes turn to dominate as Hamilton won, with Bottas finsihing in P2. Ricciardo proved his consistency by finishing third for the third race in succesion. 

8. Azerbaijan GP

Winner: Daniel Ricciardo 

Fastest lap:  Sebastian Vettel (1min43:44)

In fine spirits, Ricciardo's consistency in his previous three races proved to be the foundation for his Azerbaijan GP win as he managed to pip Bottas.

Most suprisingly, Lance Stroll had the race of his life, becoming the youngest driver in the history of F1 to claim a podium finish. 

9. Austrian GP

Winner: Valterri Bottas

Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min07:41)

Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari had a respresentitive on the podium at the Austian GP as Bottas finished in P1, Vettel in P2 and Riccairdo in third.

10. British GP 

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min30:62)

It was once again a Mercedes show in Great Britain with Hamilton and Bottas ending the race in P1 and P2 respectively. Both Ferrari's suffered punctures while Ricciardo finished in 5th place after starting the race all the way back in P19.

11. Hungarian GP

Winner: Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap:  Fernando Alonso (1min:20:18)

Heading into the mid season break, Ferrari bounced back in style as Vettel and  Räikkönen completed a lockout in P1 and P2 respectively.

12. Belgian GP

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel (1min:46:57)

The momentum for the F1 world championship began swining in the direction of Hamliton at the Belgian GP after ousting Vettel, who could only manage second spot. Ricciardo finished in a customary P3 while Räikkönen had to settle for 4th.

13. Italian GP

Winner: Lewis Hamilton 

Fastest lap : Daniel Ricciardo (1min23:36)

In what was one of the most exciting races this season as Hamilton took the lead in the championship for the first time at Ferrari's backyard.  Bottas claimed P2 while Vettel salvaged a podium spot for the Scuderia team.

14.  Singapore GP

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (1min45:00)

Many F1 fans viewed the Singapore GP as the turning point in the championship race as Vettel and Raikkonen collided into Verstappen, causing havoc on the first lap. This granted Hamilton and Ricciardo to pass up on the Ferrari clash to claim all 25 points.

15. Malaysian GP 

Winner: Max Verstappen

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel (1min34.08)

The woes continued for Ferrari in Malaysia as Vettel pulled out of qualifying while Raikkonen had to start the race from the pits depsite a P2 qualification.  Despite a valient effort from Vettel by finishing in P4, Hamilton increased his lead at the top of the table. Neverthless, the day belonged to Red Bull's Max Versatappen, as he celebrated his 20th Birthday in style by winning the Malaysian GP.

16. Japanese GP

Winner:Lewis Hamilton 

Fastest lap: Valterri Bottas (1min:33:14)

If the Singapore GP was the race that swung the momentum into Hamiltons corner for the championship, the Japanese GP was the final nail in the coffin. Ferrari again had issues with both cars however it was Vettel who suffered the most with another DNF. Hamilton capatlised with a crucial win, with the Red Bulls, Verstappen and Ricciardo completing the podium in P2 and P3.

17. United States GP

Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel (1min37:76) 

Now with a string of victories under his belt, Hamilton was well on course to win his fourth F1 title and took a step closer to the title by claiming the US GP. 

18. Mexico GP

Winner: Max Verstappen

Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel (1min:18:78)

Then it was... the title decider. And in true F1 fashion, it was nothing short of dramatic. Verstappen gathered early pace and overtook Vettel on lap one to take first place. Hamilton suffered a puncture, while Vettel clipped the back tyres of Verstappen, causing damage to his front wing. Hamilton needed to claw his way back up the pack and a place in P8 or higher would mean he become the new world champion, provided Vettel does not win the race.  That was not to be as with Vettel finishing in P4 and Hamilton in P9, the Briton claimed his 4th world title.

19. Brazilian GP

Winner: Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap: Max Verstappen(1min11:04)

With the title having been decided, Vettel secured second spot on the constructors log by wining the Brazilian GP.  Bottas found a bit of form and finished in P2 while Raikkonen took P3.

20. Abu Dhabi GP

Winner: Valterri Bottas

Fastest lap: Valterri Bottas(1min40:65)

Mercedes ended the season strongly with the grid lockout in the front. Bottas was in fine form and claimed the Abu Dhabi GP.

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