Throughout the entire Singapore Grand Prix weekend Red Bull Racing and Ferrari held the advantage over Mercedes.
Red Bull had been quickest in practice, whilst a stunning lap from Sebastian Vettel upset his former team to snatch pole position.
Mercedes and crucially Lewis Hamilton were the best of the rest in fifth.
It looked set that the next turn in the drivers championship would see Vettel take back the lead in the standings.
But then the rain fell. A wet start saw Hamilton leap from fifth to almost leading by the first corner.
Vettel, Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen all collided.
Whilst Vettel briefly looked ok, he spun out on turn 3 right in front of Hamilton.
Hamilton inherited the lead with his title rival retired.
‘I didn’t pray for a miracle or for anything to happen but when it rained I thought ‘this is it, I can win from fifth’, I was sure I could do something and then everyone disappeared. Hamilton told Sky Sports.
‘Today the miracle I needed was rain. We’ve come here 10 years and we’ve never had rain on a Sunday, or even in qualifying,’
‘It was the first time we were all driving in the rain and when that happened I was like ‘yes, it’s going to be my day’.’
It certainly proved to be Hamilton’s day.
If the race had finished as it started, as mentioned before, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel would have not only retaken the lead in the 2017 Formula One World Championship, but he would have held a significant 13 point advantage.
But as it turned out, Hamilton would eventually extend his lead from his slim 3 points to a substantial 28.
Come the end of the season will the title picture look back at Singapore as the pivotal race, or just another twist in a dramatic season?
Hamilton was confident he could win in the rain
