Lewis Hamilton Crowned World Champion In Mexico

He's been here before.

But never from 9th and in Mexico.

Lewis Hamilton has reclaimed his crown as Formula 1's World Champion.

After surrendering the throne to team mate Nico Rosberg last year, only to watch as the German retired, Hamilton's back, and arguably faster than ever.

For all of its party atmosphere, Mexico probably wasn't where Lewis wanted to get it done.

"It doesn't feel real," said Hamilton.

"I'm really happy with this fourth. I'm going to have to take some time to really think about it but I'm proud of the flag and everyone who represents it.

"That's not the kind of race that you want but I never gave up," he said.

An opening lap clash with chief rival Sebastian Vettel and a skirmish with Max Verstappen relegated him to the back of the field.

It forced him to fight his way back to 9th - enough to clinch the title.

The tangle also put Vettel well down with the Ferrari driver recovering to 4th, but not the 2nd he needed to delay Lewis' celebrations for another race.

The German later defended hitting Hamilton from behind at the first corner.

"I don't think I was too aggressive. I put my car in the perfect position and I left a lot of space for the car behind."

But the bad blood was short-lived as Vettel approached Hamilton to congratulate him after the race.

"Lewis has done a superb job all year round and deserves to win the title," he said.

The achievement makes Hamilton the most successful British driver in Formula 1 history and sees him equal Vettel and Alain Prost with 4 Championships.

Only Juan Manuel Fangio (5) and Michael Schumacher (7) have won more.

The Championship outcome overshadowed another brilliant win by Max Verstappen.

It was the 20 year old's second win of the season and his third overall.

The Dutchman was so quick he was told to slow down by his Red Bull team.

Valtteri Bottas finished 2nd for Mercedes with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen 3rd.

There was no such joy for the man in the other Red Bull with turbo-unit issues ending Daniel Ricciardo's race before he could reach the 6th lap.

All up 4 of the 6 Renault-powered cars failed to make the finish because of reliability issues.