French Grand Prix race day

18:59 Here is our report from that race. Stick with Autosport and Motorsport.com tonight and tomorrow for all the stories from the return of the French GP:

French Grand Prix: Hamilton wins, Vettel collides with Bottas

Lewis Hamilton dominated Formula 1's first French Grand Prix in 10 years and reclaimed the championship lead after title rival Sebastian Vettel clashed with Valtteri Bottas at the first corner

18:58 Hamilton's verdict on the Vettel/Bottas collision at the start as he sees a replay: "Took him right out. That's crazy!"

18:55 Ah. A bit more on Alonso's retirement. We've just been shown a replay of him limping back to the pits with his left-rear wheel at a bizarre angle. A rubbish end to a rubbish weekend for McLaren and its Le Mans winner.

18:54

18:53 Raikkonen: "It felt quite slippery at the start. I chose the outside but it was the wrong way and I had to slow down a bit. I got a bit blocked with all the mayhem that happened. Then it was a decent recovery, long stint, and things worked well. We had enough speed and managed to get the podium."

18:52 Verstappen: "I tried to follow Lewis, obviously he was controlling the pace. But I enjoyed the race. I didn't have to work very hard for it, but it's always very nice to be on the podium. At the start everybody was trying to get a position, and people can make mistakes. That happens."

18:52

18:51 Hamilton: "Grateful for a solid weekend. My guys continuously push the boundaries and never give up. This is a great day. I enjoyed the race, for me it's the best French GP I've ever had. I haven't thought about [the championship lead], but that's where I want to be."

18:50 Parc ferme interview time.

18:49

18:48

18:48 Hamilton making full use of the giant run-offs here to get closer to the grandstands as he waves to the fans.

18:47 Hamilton: "Great work guys. So happy for England as well [in the World Cup] - it's a beautiful Sunday. Happy Sunday everyone!"

18:46 Out: Alonso, Stroll (both still classified), Perez, Ocon, Gasly

18:46 Out of the points: 11 Grosjean; 12 Vandoorne; 13 Ericsson; 14 Hartley; 15 Sirotkin

18:45 Result: 1 Hamilton; 2 Verstappen; 3 Raikkonen; 4 Ricciardo; 5 Vettel; 6 Magnussen; 7 Bottas; 8 Sainz; 9 Hulkenberg; 10 Leclerc

18:45

18:45 Magnussen comes home 1.2s clear of Bottas to take that sixth.

18:45 While Magnussen is a few corners away from a great sixth, Grosjean is a lapped 11th so still won't score in 2018.

18:45 Double yellows at Signes prevent Vettel from taking fastest lap. He finishes fifth.

18:44 Bottas is too far behind to do anything about Magnussen, the second Mercedes will finish seventh.

18:44 Ricciardo takes fourth.

18:44 Vettel is on for a fastest lap here...

18:44

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR ⚠️ (LAP 51/53)<br><br>Lance Stroll suffers a catastrophic tyre failure, and is out<br><br>He becomes the fourth retirement of the race<br><br><a href='https://twitter.com/search?q=%23FrenchGP&src=hash'>#FrenchGP</a> 🇫🇷 <a href='https://twitter.com/search?q=%23F1&src=hash'>#F1</a> <a href=

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dgd5_YYWkAEtq-U.jpg"/>

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR ⚠️ (LAP 51/53)

Lance Stroll suffers a catastrophic tyre failure, and is out

He becomes the fourth retirement of the race

#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dgd5_YYWkAEtq-U.jpg

18:44 And here comes Raikkonen, to make it three teams on the podium this weekend.

18:44 Verstappen claims second for Red Bull.

18:43 Alonso says he has "rear suspension" problems and is going to pit.

18:43 Lewis Hamilton wins the French Grand Prix!

18:43 Last chance for Bottas, he's 0.9s behind Magnussen...

18:43 Hamilton is into the final sector...

18:42 VSC ending, we are back to racing with less than a lap to go.

18:41 Hamilton starts the final lap still under VSC conditions.

18:41 With one lap to go, Magnussen is still hanging on to sixth with a 1.3s cushion over Bottas and that VSC is helping.

18:41

18:40 Replays show Stroll was absolutely right about his left-front tyre blowing. He had given that tyre a fair bit of abuse with a super-long stint and lock-ups.

18:40 A virtual safety car is called because of Stroll's incident.

18:39 Sainz is still going down in eighth, with 8s gap back to Hulkenberg and two laps left so as long as the Renault keeps running he should still make it home in the points.

18:39 Hamilton's lead is back up to five seconds now. All looks under control at the front.

18:39 "Tyre blew," reports Stroll, who is stopped at Signes with front wing and tyre damage. "I think I'm done."