OMNISPORT

Lewis Hamilton described Mercedes' performance at the Singapore Grand Prix as "monumental" for the team as he pulled 40 points clear of Sebastian Vettel in the drivers' championship.

Hamilton finished ahead of Max Verstappen and Vettel at Marina Bay Street Circuit, with the German hampered by an ill-judged early pit stop in his bid to close the gap in the standings.

It was mainly plain sailing for the Briton, who only came under pressure during a brief period of traffic late in the race.

Hamilton was beaming after securing pole on Saturday and was joyous once more on Sunday after a victory he did not expect to be celebrating.

"It was long, but it was still fun. Driving this track is incredible, especially with these cars," Hamilton is quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

"I got a great start and was able to control the pack, control the tyres and push where I needed to push.

"It definitely got a little bit interesting towards the end with the backmarkers as you could already feel the draft from the cars when you were five and six seconds behind. And you can't really see the blue flags, they are quite dark.

"Max had an opportunity really. I had to go on massive defensive while still racing the backmarkers."

Discussing the importance of qualifying on pole, Hamilton continued: "We knew they [Ferrari] were going to be spectacular here this weekend and we knew it was going to take something quite special to beat them.

"It was quite a monumental moment for us as a team.

"I definitely didn't think I'd come to Singapore with 10 points more [added to his standings lead], but I'm very grateful."