Lewis Hamilton fails to win Formula One world title after third place finish at the US Grand Prix

LEWIS HAMILTON will have to wait at least another week before he can claim his fifth world title after a thrilling US GP.

It was fitting that the land of the Hollywood blockbuster threw up a such a sensational, incident packed race with a spectacular twist at the end.

Hamilton looked to be cruising to victory in Austin until he was forced to make an unscheduled pitstop, which resulted in him coming third behind race winner Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who started in 18th place.

Things looked to be going so swimmingly for Hamilton, who arrived yesterday (SUN) at the Circuit of the Americas feeling enlightened and listening to gospel music on the drive in.

He posed for photographs before taking actress Millie Bobby Brown, for a hot lap around the track before finishing off by pulling donuts and sending smoke billowing.

Yet there were certainly Stranger Things to come, as Raikkonen made the better getaway and squeezed past Hamilton into first place at Turn One.

But the real drama came further back when Hamilton's title rival, Sebastian Vettel, spun off the track after an unnecessary overtaking manoeuvre.

He did the same in Monza and again at Suzuka; two bold and rash moves on the first lap where he came off the worst.

He made it an unwelcome hat-trick in the US. As he pressed Daniel Ricciardo, the two touched and Vettel was sent spinning.

He returned to the track in 15th place; his job of delaying Hamilton's championship had become even harder.

With gritted teeth, Vettel started to mount a comeback and began fighting his way through the field.

He was ironically given a helping hand when Ricciardo was forced to retire for the seventh time this season.

His retirement elevated Vettel, who had already made up ground, to fifth place behind Verstappen.

As the marshals recovered the Red Bull, race stewards deployed the virtual safety car and Mercedes made the bold decision to call Hamilton in for a pitstop.

It was lap 11 and meant the he would need to stop again to get to the end of the race --a decision which ultimately proved costly and will lead to yet another investigation by his Mercedes team.

Hamilton did enjoy a thrilling tussled with race leader Raikkonen, and the two experienced racers played out a battle on laps 20 and 21 before the Finn pitted.

Unlikely Vettel, Hamilton showed maturity and experience to back out of a challenge whenever Raikkonen closed the door, before regaining his momentum and attempting another pass.

It was brilliant to watch between two drivers sharing a mutual level of respect but the fight took the life out of Hamilton's tyres and he was forced to make an unscheduled stop.

It turned this shoe-in to the title on its head, as destiny was again taken out of Hamilton's hands and means he will now need to wait until the Mexican GP.

Hamilton needed to pass Verstappen and Raikkonen to be assured of victory, while also requiring Bottas to play his role in keeping Vettel behind and in fifth place.

Unfortunately for Hamilton, nether happened. He chased down Verstappen through backmarkers and waited for his moment to pounce.

Rather like his maiden title in 2008 when a final-lap overtake moved him fifth, earning enough points to deny Felipe Massa the championship.

This had all the hallmarks of another fight to the finish but there would be no fairytail ending.

Hamilton saw his moment three laps from the end as he made his move on Verstappen, it looked perfect but the celebrations in the Mercedes garage proved premature.

Verstappen held his line and regain third place while Hamilton was carrying too much speed and ran off track.

It was a huge blow to the Brit, who lost ground on the Dutchman. A rare mistake that cost him dearly as he was dealt an even bigger blow as Bottas too was leapfrogged by Vettel at the death and the German was fourth.

Raikkonen held on to win his first race since the 2013 Australian GP while Verstappen's brilliant drive underlines his reputation as a future world champion.

Hamilton admitted he was left baffled by Merc's decision to call him into to the pits so early for a tyre change.

The result means he now has a 70 point lead over Vettel with 75 points still on offer in the final three races of the season.

Driver of the Day: Max Verstappen was sensational, going from 18th to second place.

Move of the Race: Vettel regained fourth place by holding his nerve and pressuring Bottas into a mistake.

Mistake of the Race: Vettel's first lap spin after tangling with Ricciardo was just another nail in the coffin.

Milkfloat: Lance Stroll was slow in his Williams and guilty of causing Fernando Alonso's crash.