Hamilton wins dramatic Grand Prix

4:37pm Sunday 7th September 2008

Lewis Hamilton claimed his fifth win of the year after a dramatic conclusion to a remarkable Belgian Grand Prix.

Rain late in the race made the Spa circuit as slippery as an ice-rink, and it was Hamilton who took full advantage as championship rival Kimi Raikkonen crashed into a wall.

The McLaren star now has an eight-point advantage over Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who claimed second, with Raikkonen now 23 points adrift and seemingly with little hope of retaining his title.

"The heavens opened and I saw Kimi begin to back off earlier than he had done," Hamilton said. "It was incredibly tough."

It was a fitting triumph for Hamilton with McLaren celebrating the 40th anniversary of their first Formula One victory at this track, under founder Bruce McLaren in 1968.

But it was a win which might not have come but for the late showers that took hold and affected the closing stages.

Raikkonen slid off into a wall, out of the race, and potentially out of the championship.

Hamilton then tip-toed around the track for the last lap, punching the air when he finally crossed the line.

Massa managed to claim second, with BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld taking advantage of the mayhem to finish third.

Fernando Alonso took fourth in his Renault, followed by Sebastian Vettel for Toro Rosso, Kubica, Sebastien Bourdais in his Toro Rosso and Toyota's Timo Glock.

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