Lewis Hamilton stood by Mercedes’ decision to manufacture his controversial win in Russia that takes him ever closer to a fifth world championship.

Hamilton will head into the final five rounds with an almost uncatchable 50-point lead over Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel after teammate Valtteri Bottas was ordered out of his way at the Sochi Autodrom.

Bottas was in complete control of the race only for Mercedes to instruct him to step aside with 30 laps remaining.

To the absolute credit of Mercedes, they have avoided using team orders in their recent history, but with Vettel still in striking range of Hamilton, they adopted a change of tact here, denying Bottas his first win of 2018 and handing their star driver seven extra, and potentially, critical points.

Hamilton was a reluctant winner, and chose not to celebrate. Instead, he immediately sought to console Bottas.

This type of victory is not Hamilton’s style. Instead, he invited Bottas to join him on the top step of the podium, and even appeared to suggest to the deflated Finn that he should lift the winners’ trophy in front of the watching Russian president Vladimir Putin, who arrived for the concluding laps.

Bottas stared vacantly as the national anthems were played, and the mood had eased little by the time both Mercedes drivers appeared alongside Vettel for the post-race press conference.

“It doesn’t feel great,” Hamilton said. “I definitely don’t think I have finished first in my career, and feel the way that I do right now.

“Only time will tell if it was necessary, but if we were to lose the championship by one point, would you look back at this race and think we should have worked as a team?

“We are a team, and the team want to win both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships, so that is why the bosses took the decision.”

Toto Wolff, team principal for the Silver Arrows, admitted it was an agonising decision, and one which led to him enduring a restless night on Saturday after Bottas beat Hamilton to pole.

After the race, Hamilton took to Instagram to congratulate Bottas for an incredible weekend, and his message can be seen below.

"Firstly I’m proud of our team for securing a 1-2 here in Russia in the face of tough competition.

"I always want to win in the right way and I really want to acknowledge Valtteri today. He did an incredible job throughout this weekend and the team made a tough decision.

"We have to embrace the moment still, it’s a win for us and we now place full focus on Japan @mercedesamgf1 #RussianGP"