Canadians Lance Stroll, Nicholas Latifi crash out at F1 Tuscan Grand Prix

Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton kept his cool amid the mayhem caused by an unpredictable circuit, winning a crash-marred Tuscan Grand Prix on Sunday for the 90th win of his incredible career.

He is just one win behind Michael Schumacher's record and inching closer to matching the German great's record of seven F1 titles.

"My heart is racing," Hamilton said. "It is crazy to be here and to have 90 grand prix (wins)."

The first F1 race on a Mugello track with super-fast corners usually used by MotoGP riders was incident-packed. Two crashes on the first seven laps saw six drivers go out, and a red flag suspended the race for the first time after the second one.

A second red flag late on following Canadian Lance Stroll's heavy crash meant another grid restart — on Lap 46 of 59 — and gave Valtteri Bottas another chance to beat race leader Hamilton if he made a strong start from second.

WATCH | A puncture sends Montreal's Lance Stroll to the wall:

Lance Stroll spins out of Tuscan Grand Prix

4 years ago

Duration 0:52

With Lance Stroll in 4th place, a puncture sends him to the wall and out of the race.

"With all those restarts, total focus was needed," Hamilton said. "It was really, really hard."

Hamilton held firm and Bottas is now 55 points behind Hamilton in the title race.

"It was all a bit of daze. It was like three races in one day. Just incredibly tough today," a relieved Hamilton said. "This track is phenomenal and keeping Valtteri behind was not easy."

Far from an easy race

Bottas pushed hard and got to within 1.1 seconds of Hamilton on the penultimate lap but the British driver clocked a fastest lap on the last one to take a bonus point.

Red Bull driver Alexander Albon drove well to finish third and clinch a first career podium that will boost his chances of keeping his seat alongside team star Max Verstappen next year.

Hamilton can equal Schumacher's record for wins at the Russian GP in two weeks and take a step closer to matching Schumacher's record of seven world titles.

WATCH | Lewis Hamilton pulls out 90th career win:

Crash takes out Nicholas Latifi at Tuscan Grand Prix

4 years ago

Duration 0:48

Montreal's Nicholas Latifi is out of the race when a crash happens right behind him and is clipped.

The race was far from easy for Hamilton, however, and he looked out of breath sitting in his car moments after crossing the line.

Safety car out on Lap 1

He had started from pole position for a record-extending 95th time but was overtaken by Bottas' brilliant move off the line. But Bottas could not profit from it because of the imminent crashes.

Verstappen started third for Red Bull but he and Pierre Gasly crashed moments in, bringing the safety car out on Lap 1.

Verstappen got clipped by Kimi Raikkonen's Alfa Romeo after falling back. Carlos Sainz Jr. somehow avoided getting seriously hit when his McLaren span in the middle of the track and cars swerved around him.

No drivers hurt

After the safety car ended, a zig-zagging Bottas backed everyone up. Some of the cars tightly bunched at the back were early on the throttle after presuming the race was back on, accelerating into the middle of the pack.

Chaos ensued as Antonio Giovinazzi's Alfa Romeo speared into Kevin Magnussen's Haas and Toronto's Nicholas Latifi's Williams while Sainz Jr. then slammed into the back of Giovinazzi.

"It's really dangerous like that. Those at the front have to think of those behind," Giovinazzi said. "We were flat out."

No drivers were hurt but several were angered by the tactics deployed at the front.

WATCH | Toronto's Nicholas Latifi clipped early in race:

Lewis Hamilton clinches 90th Formula One victory

4 years ago

Duration 1:23

With Lewis Hamilton's win at the Tuscan Grand Prix, he's now one victory away from tying Michael Schumacher's record.

Sainz reported that he and the others were OK. "The crash was really scary," he said.

"It felt like at the back of the grid where I was that everyone in front of me thought the race was going and we were all flat out until someone realized the race was not on," added the Spaniard.

"It's definitely not a nice feeling to do 280 kilometres per hour and suddenly find three cars in the middle of the straight."

When the race re-started it was on the grid, meaning Bottas was on pole ahead of Hamilton.

But Hamilton got a tow on Bottas and passed him easily, and Bottas was nearly eight seconds behind Hamilton when he came in for new tires on Lap 32.

Then, Stroll's Racing Point flew over the gravel and the car's front smashed into the barriers. The red flag nullified Hamliton's lead and gave Bottas another chance.

But he failed to take it.