JONATHAN MCEVOY IN AUSTIN: The props of his life were showing up in Texas as Lewis Hamilton edged ineluctably towards one of the greatest achievements in the history of British sport.

Valtteri Bottas hopes of at least delaying Lewis Hamilton's coronation of being crowned a six times world champion were boosted in qualifying after he took pole position for the United States GP.

JONATHAN McEVOY IN AUSTIN: At 34, he moved one title ahead of Fangio, completing yet another milestone in his transformation from a council estate boy into a global F1 star.

Lewis Hamilton has been backed by his Mercedes boss to rewrite the sport's record books for years to come after winning the Formula One world title for the sixth time.

Just a finish of eighth place was needed to secure the four points to land Hamilton out of reach of his last remaining title rival - Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas. The Brit finished in second.

EXCLUSIVE BY MIKE KEEGAN: Lewis Hamilton's stunning sixth World Championship triumph was achieved amid a backdrop of tragedy, Sportsmail can reveal.

EXCLUSIVE BY JONATHAN McEVOY: As Lewis Hamilton whisked friends and family away to celebrate his sixth world championship the great and good were working on another important trip.

The Austrian said that having secured the both championships this season, he would stay in Europe to attend to other matters, with Mercedes set to make its Formula E debut on November 22.

Lewis Hamilton has patched up his relationship with the man who launched his career, Ron Dennis. He revealed that after winning his sixth world title, he received congratulations from him.

JONATHAN McEVOY IN SAO PAULO: Verstappen drove spectacularly in the wet here three ago but could only finish second on that occasion after a collision with backmarker Esteban Ocon.

Former Labour cabinet minister Lord Hain has written to Downing Street calling for Hamilton to be rewarded with an upgrade on the MBE he received after he won his maiden championship in 2008.

INTERVIEW BY LAURA LAMBERT: Eliud Kipchoge will not let his achievements be reduced to a pair of hi-tech shoes. For him, Nike's controversial trainers only help so much.

Thom Evans has reportedly been bidding for Nicole Scherzinger's affections for the past six years.

The F1 champion, 35, shared a shirtless snap of himself before going for a run as he told how he's hard at work on his fitness and is 'not where I want to be'.

The pair pipped Tiger Woods, Rafael Nadal, Marc Marquez and Eliud Kipchoge for the honour. Messi won his sixth Ballon d'Or last year as Barcelona won La Liga for the 26th time.

A host of sporting greats were honoured for their achievements at the annual Laureus World Sports Awards, held in Berlin on Monday night, and Sportsmail's photographer Andy Hooper was allowed exclusive behind the scenes access to capture the glitzy ceremony in all of its glory.

Lewis Hamilton has got behind Barcelona ahead of Sunday's El Clasico, admitting his admiration for the Catalan side and sending 'positive energy' for their crunch La Liga clash.   

Lewis Hamilton has paid an emotional tribute to Sir Stirling Moss after the British motor racing icon died at the age of 90. The British world champion said he is grateful for his 'friendship' with the icon.

The most powerful figure in the Catholic Church took to social media to share a cryptic tweet in the hours after the Victorian Supreme Court turned down Pell's appeal against sex abuse convictions.

Francis had been addressing the Vatican Dicastery for Communication which he founded in 2015 to catapult the tradition-centred Church into the digital age.

Speaking at a three-day event, Pope Francis warned Silicon Valley and tech giants in the audience to be ware AI doesn't lead to a new 'form of barbarism', resulting in the manipulation of millions.

The Pope made the comments during a three-week meeting to discuss the priest shortage in the Amazon. The Vatican are considering ordaining married men and giving women ministries.

Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi (pictured) writes that the Vatican lost nearly €44million (£38million) last year while its property empire made a loss for the first time.

The film, set to release on December 20, will showcase the transition of power between Benedict (Hopkins, 81) and Francis (Pryce, 72), with the latter taking over the papacy from the former in 2013.

Speaking in Rome on Friday, Pope Francis said it's 'a duty' to introduce 'the sin against ecology' to the Catholic Church's teachings as a way to protect 'our common home'.

Netflix built a replica of the Sistine Chapel after the Vatican denied them access to film the Two Popes there. The Vatican refuses requests for any narrative filming in the chapel.

In an eagerly-awaited document, Francis did not even refer to recommendations by Amazonian bishops to consider the ordination of married men and women deacons.

Pope Francis (pictured today) prayed that clergymen would 'have the courage to go out and go to the sick people' as he celebrated Mass by himself at the Vatican this morning.

Pope Francis was seen delivering his weekly Angelus prayer to an empty Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican City this morning, as Italians stay home to combat the spread of coronavirus .

Some 5,476 people have died after testing positive for coronavirus across Italy, with more than 59,000 cases of the deadly virus confirmed.

Pope Francis gave his homily as he spoke via webcam from the chapel of his Vatican residence Tuesday, urging Christians not to indulge in the 'evil' of self pity but to instead make positive changes.

The Argentine pontiff live-streamed an Easter Monday prayer from his private library as the Vatican and Italy entered a second month of restrictions on most outdoor activities.

Veteran employee Gilbert Serna, 36, and loyal customer Adria Gonzalez, 37, have been credited with saving dozens of lives by directing people to safety during the massacre on Saturday.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez used a vigil for victims of gun violence on Monday night to call Donald Trump a racist. 'I don't want to hear the question, 'Is this president racist?' anymore. He is,' she said.

Employees were sent were sent a memo on Thursday, which circulated online, instructing them to 'immediately' remove 'aggressive' displays, including hunting videos and combat games.

A 70-year-old man camping in a Walmart parking lot put a hot cook stove in his van, causing it to catch fire and spread to another van, burning two young sisters and killing one of them.

Dole Fresh Vegetables, which sells in Target and Walmart, issued a warning to customers on Friday to trash their 6oz bags and 10oz clam-shell boxes of baby spinach that have a sell-by date of August 5.

Presidential hopeful Beto O'Rourke (pictured) made an unannounced visit to a gun show in Arkansas to discuss his plan to ban assault weapons and a gun buyback program. 

El Paso shooting suspect Patrick Crusius, 21, says he purchased his AK-47 rifle from Romania and his ammo from Russia in his August 3 attack in a Walmart that left 22 dead.

Jessica and Guillermo Garcia are demanding answers as to why there were no security guards in place to prevent the shooting at an El Paso Walmart in August, killing 22 and injuring 24.

The 57-year-old singer was making the press rounds in New York City, spotted at Buzzfeed's AM to DM show and Build Series on Thursday afternoon.

A crowd gathered at the Walmart Supercenter in Alpharetta, Georgia, and witnessed two strangers share a beautiful moment in song. Video was filmed last year but recently went viral.

Wence and Jerald Flores-Monge, aged 21 and 18 , were arrested after spewing racial profanities at a store worker in Kenner, Louisiana. A third family member, Sandy Monge also was charged.

Patrick Crusius, 21, pleaded not guilty to capital murder charges Thursday. Crusius is accused of opening fire inside a crowded El Paso Walmart and killing 22 people on August 3.

The crooner was found with methamphetamine when he was picked up in Burbank earlier this month. DeBarge was approached by police after being seen trying to open an SUV with wire.

Former US Army 1st Lt Clint Lorance (left) tweeted on Thursday that it was 'impossible to find a job' despite the fact that he was granted a full pardon by President Trump (right) last month.

Days after Walmart pulled a controversial sweater featuring a cartoon Santa Claus doing cocaine with the tagline 'Let It Snow' from its website, the infamous novelty item has now become a best-seller.

A man (pictured) wearing a yellow face mask and a sign on his back reading, 'Caution, I have the Coronavirus,' walked into a Walmart store in Illinois (inset) and sprayed Lysol on merchandise.

The stubborn pooch was filmed in a car park in Walmart in Toronto, Ontario in Canada. The recorder is heard saying 'What's up!' and 'I can see you!' but the dog continues to ignore him.

The bomb squad took Spot to a Walmart in Westboro, Massachusetts after employees spotted a suspicious looking 'old brown briefcase' abandoned on a bin in the car park.