Smash hit

Vettel duly went by Hamilton and then passed Glock, leaving the Briton in mortal danger of finishing as World Championship runner-up for the second season in a row. But Hamilton kept his nerve as he stole round the final few corners until he was able to move into position to make the pass, which came between Turns 12 and 13, when Massa had already finished.

McLaren’s gamble had paid off and the celebrations could start, led by Hamilton, who almost climbed out of his cockpit to thrust his right hand into the air to salute a crowd that had greeted him with boos and catcalls when he arrived on the grid.

Glock, who eventually finished sixth, revealed that there was nothing he could do to defend his position. “I was on dry tyres at the end of the race when it was raining quite badly and it was just impossible on the last lap,” he said.

“I was fighting as hard as I could, but it was so difficult to just keep the car on the track.” His words were supported by the deteriorating performance of Jarno Trulli, his Toyota team-mate, whose final lap time was practically the same as the German’s.

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Despite his criticism of the remarkable tactical decision taken by the Hamilton team, Jordan says that the British driver will win more titles – but claims that this might have been very different had he not managed to grab his maiden success yesterday.

“I do foresee him winning a number of championships. After yesterday, anything is possible,” he told BBC One. “If (McLaren team principal) Ron Dennis makes a decision to take on a rookie - which he has never done before - he had to have something special.

“But I think Lewis has lost a little bit of what he had in the pit lane. This was a difficult year for him, and I think it was important that he put down his marker by winning the championship now because there is a lot of young talent around.”

The dramatic occasion took motor racing to new television ratings heights, with a record 13.1 million watching the Brazilian Grand Prix at its peak. The average audience for the entire broadcast from 4pm to 7.15pm on ITV1 was 8.8 million with a 42% audience share. It was the most-watched race in its 11-year history of broadcasting the sport.