The 2018 season was one of the most intense F1 seasons for Lewis Hamilton. The then-Mercedes driver was in a straight battle with Ferrari driver, Sebastia Vettel. The two battled against each other for their fifth Formula 1 title. Ferrari was the fastest car on the grid, but their strategy spoiled the party. Vettel’s dream ended when he crashed from pole at his home Grand Prix in Germany in wet conditions. He never recovered after that and was never a driver like before.
Max Verstappen was also one of the biggest reasons for Vettel's downfall that year. The Dutchman was not the world champion then and is one of those emerging talents in F1. During the 2018 Japanese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was on pole position while his title rival, Sebastian Vettel, started eighth on the grid.
Watch: Vettel and verstappen collide at the 2018 Suzuka GP
Vettel's strong start and controversial battle with Verstappen
On the opening lap, Vettel had a good start and was fifth by the end of the first lap. Max Verstappen, who started third, was trying hard to defend his place against the incoming Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel. During one attempt, he pushed Kimi out of the track and was handed a 5-second time penalty. Sebastian vettel then tried to sneak past Verstappen on the outside, and Max pushed him off the track, spinning.
Max Verstappen had some floor damage, while Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari suffered a sidepod damage. This also pushed him into 19th place, and he had to do the hard work of overtaking. Vettel came inside the top 10 after overtaking every other driver and also to keep his title hopes alive.
In the end, Vettel finished sixth with the fastest lap. If Verstappen hadn't collided with Vettel, he would have been on the podium and decreased Hamilton’s title lead. With everyone fighting on the back of the grid, Hamilton extended his title lead to 67 points. Lewis Hamilton went on to win the Formula 1 world title that year, and Vettel never won another championship in his career.
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