Raikkonen penalty hands Mercedes constructors title

Mercedes won their second successive Formula 1 constructors' title on Sunday after Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was penalised for causing a collision.

The Finn had finished fifth in the Russian Grand Prix won by Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton but picked up a 30-second penalty that dropped him to eighth place and meant Mercedes had mathematically clinched the title with four races to spare.

With 11 grand prix wins out of 15 so far this season, and 506 points to their credit, the Silver Arrows cannot be beaten in the four remaining races.

Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars said, "What an incredible moment for Mercedes-Benz! Congratulations to our team in Brackley and Brixworth who have worked so hard to make this achievement possible, winning a second world championship in a row."

"After winning in 2014, we raised the bar again to secure this year's title, and we needed to because our rivals gave us plenty of headaches as they stepped up their performance. The work by our team is the perfect example of what drives Mercedes-Benz forward: the best technology."

"The most efficient hybrid petrol engine that our company has ever made, world-beating aerodynamics and intelligent design in every part of the W06 Hybrid racing car."

"Most importantly, though, we must not forget the human factor: we have two exceptional sportsmen at the wheel, Lewis and Nico, and a fantastic team behind the scenes, who have delivered 12 wins in 15 races so far this year. Their work has made every employee of Mercedes-Benz a world champion and we are very proud of them,"concluded Zetsche.