TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2014 SPORTS Ten in Texas for Hamilton, Mercedes equals record AUSTIN: Lewis Hamilton took a big step winner. Hamilton’s second victory in Austin towards a second Formula One world cham- came six years to the day since he won his pionship on Sunday with his 10th win of the first world title in Brazil in 2008 but he will season in a US Grand Prix that saw Mercedes have to wait until Nov. 23 now to know if he is equal the record for one-two finishes. The to be champion again thanks to the novelty Briton stretched his lead over team mate Nico of double points for the final race. Rosberg to 24 points with two races and a Australian Daniel Ricciardo finished third maximum of 75 points remaining, a gap that for Red Bull in a result that mathematically guarantees the title chase will go down to the ruled him out of a title battle that is now a final round in Abu Dhabi whatever happens straight duel between the Mercedes drivers in Brazil. and guarantees their team both titles. “It’s been an incredible run. This whole Hamilton has 316 points to Rosberg’s 292. season has been incredible really,” said Behind the top three, Williams pulled fur- Hamilton after his fifth win in succession. ther away from Ferrari in the constructors’ Rosberg led from pole position but Hamilton championship already won by Mercedes with saw his chance and grabbed it when the fourth and fifth places for Brazilian Felipe German went wide into turn 12 on the 24th Massa and Finland’s Valtteri Bottas respective- of 56 laps. ly. Hamilton went through on the inside, Without a slow pitstop, that allowed forcing his team mate onto the runoff on the Ricciardo to get ahead, Massa might have exit in an emphatic move that left no room been on the podium. Ferrari’s Fernando for reply and summed up the confidence and Alonso was sixth and Red Bull’s Vettel, the momentum he carried into the race. “I was quadruple champion and last year’s winner quite a bit back but I felt very confident, there who started from the pit lane due to an was a big headwind into 12, and I just felt like engine penalty, took seventh after making up I was waiting for the moment really, to just be seven places in the last seven laps. just close enough to throw it up the inside,” McLaren’s Kevin Magnussen was eighth. said Hamilton. “And that’s what I did.” Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne finished ninth A dejected Rosberg told former champion for Toro Rosso but was demoted to 10th after Mario Andretti in a podium interview, with a a five second penalty was applied for forcing sea of fans spilling onto the track below in the Lotus’s Romain Grosjean off the road. Texas sunshine, that losing again to his team That elevated Venezuelan Pastor mate “kind of sucks”. Maldonado to ninth for Lotus, his first points “It took too long for me to find my rhythm. of the season. Sauber’s hopes of a first point Once Lewis got by I found my rhythm but it of a nightmare season, after Adrian Sutil had AUSTIN: Race winner Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, of Britain, holds up his trophy as teammate and second place finisher Nico Rosberg, of was too late,” he said. The pair finished 4.3 qualified 10th, disappeared when the Germany (left) and third place finisher Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo, of Australia (right) join him on the podium after the Formula One US seconds apart to equal McLaren’s 1988 German was shunted out on the first lap by Grand Prix. — AP record, set by Alain Prost and the late Ayrton Force India’s Sergio Perez, who also hit Kimi Senna, of 10 one-two finishes in a season- Raikkonen’s Ferrari. even if there were fewer races back in those The incident, with the wrecked Sauber Cruzeiro defeat Botafogo days. Hamilton is only the third driver and left stranded and thousands of Mexican fans first non-German, after Michael Schumacher disappointed to see Perez retire, brought out and Sebastian Vettel, to win 10 races in a sin- the safety car for two laps as marshals gle season. cleared debris strewn across the track. It was to maintain lead in Brazil He is the third Briton, after Jim Clark and also an ironic outcome for both, given that Nigel Mansell, to win five in a row and is now much of the build-up had been overshad- also his country’s most successful in terms of owed by talk of a possible boycott by Sauber SAO PAULO: Cruzeiro scored twice in the first 15 min- Brazilian champion in 2010 and 2012. Sixth-place forward Nixon. Palmeiras moved five points clear from wins with 32. and Force India as a protest against the utes and held on to defeat Botafogo 2-1 in the Gremio edged Vitoria 1-0 at the Arena Gremio in Porto relegation zone thanks to a 1-0 win over second-to- unequal division of revenues and lack of Brazilian league on Sunday, maintaining a five-point Alegre, while seventh-place Corinthians missed a last place Bahia. Striker Mazinho scored after a set up PRIVILEGE support. Only nine teams took part in the lead over second-place Sao Paulo going into the com- chance to move closer after a 2-2 home draw with by Chile playmaker Jorge Valdivia, ending the team’s “It is such a privilege to represent my race, the lowest number since 2005, due to petition’s final rounds. Coritiba. Corinthians was losing 2-0 at halftime and three-match winless streak. Also Saturday, a fourth- country and to be top of the drivers’ stand- Caterham and Marussia going into adminis- Sao Paulo stayed within range with six matches only equalized in the last minute of injury time. division match in southern Brazil was interrupted for ings. The car was great today,” said the race tration. — Reuters remaining thanks to a late 2-1 victory at last-place Former Brazil and Fenerbahce playmaker Alex scored nearly half an hour because of a brawl involving play- Criciuma. Third-place Internacional remained eight one of the goals for Coritiba, which remains in relega- ers from clubs Londrina and Brasil de Pelotas. Four points back from the lead by beating Santos 2-1 with tion zone. players were taken to a police station for interrogation both goals by Chile midfielder Charles Aranguiz at the In a late match, fifth-place Atletico Mineiro missed after the altercation. Local media said some were offi- Walcott return a Vila Belmiro Stadium in Santos. a chance to move within seven points of Cruzeiro after cially accused for their involvement. A cameraman Four teams are 10 points back - Fluminense, a 1-0 loss to Atletico Paranaense in Curitiba, while and a staff member for one of the clubs sustained Atletico Mineiro, Gremio and Corinthians. Forward Flamengo routed Chapecoense 3-0 with two goals by minor injuries in the incident. — AP boost for Arsenal Marquinhos opened the scoring for Cruzeiro just five minutes into the match at the Mineirao Stadium in LONDON: Arsenal got more than three points go and practise and maybe get a few min- Belo Horizonte, and left back Egidio added to the lead and three goals in their 3-0 Premier League utes,” Wenger said. “Mentally, it will help him. with a 15th-minute free kick. win over Burnley on Saturday-they also got “Is he completely ready? I think it is a bit ear- Botafogo, which stayed in relegation zone with the Theo Walcott back after 10 months out with a ly but to be in the squad will be good for loss, scored its lone goal in second-half injury time. cruciate ligament injury. The England winger him.” Wenger will take a cautious approach Cruzeiro reached 64 points from 32 matches with the came on for the last 10 minutes for his first to the winger’s re-introduction to the first victory, its 19th in the competition. The defending appearance since damaging his knee in the team and hinted he would not start against champion had drawn twice in a row entering the FA Cup win over arch-rivals Tottenham the Belgium champions, who were just min- weekend. “We have to find a way to keep this same Hotspur on Jan. 4 and is now likely to be in utes away from beating Arsenal in Brussels pace until the end to keep this lead and lift the trophy the squad for today’s Champions League two weeks ago before the visitors won 2-1 again,” Cruzeiro forward Everton Ribeiro said. Sao match against Anderlecht. with two late goals. Paulo striker Alan Kardec scored with a header in the Walcott is likely to be among the substi- “I am not ruling it out but I don’t want to 83rd minute to give his club the victory at the tutes for the Group D match at the Emirates make a mistake,” he added. Borussia Heriberto Hulse Stadium in Criciuma, leaving the and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is Dortmund top the group with nine points home team last in the 20-team standings with 20 delighted he is available again. from three games, followed by Arsenal on six points. Internacional picked up its first ever win at the “It’s good to have Theo back. Hopefully he and Anderlecht and Galatasaray on one.