MOTOR SPORT - In 2017 the racing action on show was the perfect advert for motorsport the world over.
Formula 1 had its most hotly contested, between drivers from different teams, championship since before the start of the Mercedes dominance over the sport.
Ferrari really came to the party in 2017 and Sebastian Vettel was in pole position of the fight for the driver title before the mid-season break.
Vettel won the season opener in Australia before Hamilton opened his account with victory in China. Vettel picked up his second win of the season in Bahrain before Valtteri Bottas notched up his first ever GP win in Russia. Vettel then got his third win of the season in Monaco and Hamilton claimed his second maximum in Canada.
Action then headed to Azerbaijan where Daniel Ricciardo broke the Ferrari-Mercedes monotony, but the Red Bull victory is not what the race will be remembered for. An angry altercation between Vettel and Hamilton saw the Ferrari man drive into the back of the Mercedes behind the safety car. Vettel then proceeded to pull-up alongside and then barge into the side of Hamilton in frustration for the ‘break-check’ which caused the initial contact. The German copped a 10s stop-and-go penalty which saw his hope of victory go up in smoke. Hamilton was denied a victory when a loose headrest forced him to make an unscheduled stop and he eventually finished fifth behind Vettel.
