Lewis Hamilton took another large step towards retaining the Formula One title by winning the Russian Grand Prix in Sochi as his main rival Nico Rosberg failed to finish.

Hamilton can claim his third career title at the next race in Texas, while his Mercedes team retained the constructors’ title after a season in which the Silver Arrows have once again dominated.

Hamilton started in second on the grid behind his teammate Rosberg but claimed over the lead when his Rosberg experienced a throttle error that forced him to slow to a crawl and then to retire in the pits. Hamilton then cruised to victory by 5.9 seconds over Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, with Sergio Perez claiming a brilliant third for Force India, 23 seconds further behind. For the second year running, Hamilton received his winner’s trophy from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who also greeted the top three drivers ahead of the podium ceremony. Felipe Massa was fourth for Williams, with Russian driver Daniil Kvyat moved up to fifth after Raikkonen’s penalty.

The race was far more exciting than the inaugural installment the previous year with two major accidents bringing out the safety car in the early stages. The fight for the lead on the first lap between Hamilton and Rosberg was almost immediately ended by a first-lap incident when Nico Hulkenberg’s Force India span, collecting the Sauber of Marcus Ericsson, and leaving both cars stranded and the first call for the safety car. On lap 12, Romain Grosjean lost control of his Lotus and flew into the barriers at high speed destroying the Lotus. Luckily, despite the ferocity of the impact, Grosjean was able to walk away uninjured.

Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz Jr., who doctors only cleared to race on Sunday morning following his heavy crash in practice, started at the back of the grid. The Spaniard stormed through the field into the top 10, but unfortunately his superb race ended late on when his brakes overheated.