Hamilton wins Japan Grand Prix

British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton on Sunday won the Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka Circuit to take a 10-point lead in the championship with four races remaining.

The race was marred, however, by heavy rain brought by the approaching typhoon and the serious injuries sustained by Marussia's French driver Jules Bianchi. The 25-year-old was unconcious when driven to hospital and will undergo surgery.

"The CT scan shows that he has suffered a severe head injury and is currently undergoing surgery," a FIA statement said. "Following this he will be moved to intensive care where he will be monitored. Mie General Hospital will issue an update as soon as further information becomes available."

The crash followed an earlier incident involving Adrian Sutil, for which a double-yellow flag had been waved advising drivers to slow down. Bianchi,back in 17th place at the time, lost control of his car in the torrential rain and fading light, spinning off of the track into the back of a recovery veichle.

Sutil, who was stood at the scene one lap after his own crash at turn 7, said the worsening light had made it difficult to spot wet patches of the track. However, other drivers said that the conditions, while difficult, were not the worst they had encountered.

Bianchi is in his second season of Formula One racing having developed through the Ferrari young driver's programm. A show of support from his former employers came after the race which they dubbed a "Sad Sunday."

Strong Brit display

It is the eighth win of the season, and the third in a row, for the Britian's Hamilton, who forced teammate Nico Rosberg, strating from pole, to settle for second place.

Both Hamilton and Rosberg, locked in a fierce battle for the driver's championship, were subdued after the race.

"It's not nice to hear one of our colleagues is seriously injured so that's the main worry," Hamilton said.

Rosberg added: "I'm not thinking about the race, I'm thinking about my colleague. I've been given some information and it seems very, very serious. I'm hoping for the best."

Hamilton holds a 10-point lead over rival Rosberg at the summit of the driver's championship. Germany's four-time world champion, meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel came in third for the Red Bull team, a day after confirming that he would be leaving the team at the end of the season.

Heavy rain brought by an approaching typhoon caused one start to be interrupted after just two laps and the first nine laps were run behind the safety car. The race was halted after the crash and was not restarted after the 46th lap of the race.

The typhoon is expected to dump more rain on the region during the course of the night.

tj,msh/rd (AP, AFP, dpa)