Reigning World Champion Lewis Hamilton secured back-to-back Formula 1 victories in dominant fashion as he cruised to victory at the Spanish Grand Prix, leading home a Mercedes 1-2.
Hamilton beat team-mate Bottas to the chequered flag by over 20 seconds to extend his championship lead to 17 points, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen picked up his first podium of the season in third place.
Sebastian Vettel's strategy of making a second pit stop under a Virtual Safety Car period failed to come to fruition, as he dropped from second to fourth.
Results: Spanish GP race results in full | Drivers' Standings | Constructors' Standings
In a processional race, where looming black clouds threatened rain that never materialised, the only major drama of note came at the start.
Hamilton converted his pole position into the lead while Vettel tucked in behind Bottas and used the slipstream to pass the Mercedes driver into Turn 1.
But it was further back where the mess unfolded, as a spinning Romain Grosjean collected Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly in spectacular fashion.
Grosjean, having been unsettled by Haas team-mate Kevin Magnussen sliding slightly sideways exiting Turn 2, ran wide and spun through Turn 3, in front of the chasing pack.
Grosjean’s spinning car resulted in an array of tyre smoke and the unsighted Hulkenberg and Gasly creamed into the stricken Haas, leaving all three out on the spot.
Hamilton duly kept Vettel at bay following six laps before the Safety Car and cruised clear, building a lead of seven seconds by the time the Ferrari driver pitted for Mediums on lap 17 of 66.
Vettel’s stop unleashed Bottas and he set rapid sector times – but a slightly tardy stop two laps later ensured Vettel remained ahead.
Hamilton stayed out until lap 25 and slotted back in behind the yet-to-stop Verstappen, who had profited from the exit of Kimi Raikkonen mere minutes before.
Verstappen had trailed Raikkonen throughout the first stint but the Finn suffered a suspected engine issue and slowed, dropping out of fourth place, before retiring altogether.
Verstappen’s stop nine laps later unleashed Hamilton and the Briton reeled off the remaining half of the race in a controlled fashion, to triumph at the Spanish Grand Prix for a third time.
However, Bottas – not Vettel – wound up as his nearest rival as Ferrari opted to service its driver for fresh Mediums when the Virtual Safety Car was triggered on lap 42 after Esteban Ocon halted due to mechanical failure.
Vettel emerged from the pit lane in fourth place, a couple of seconds behind Verstappen, who sustained minor front wing damage when he clipped Lance Stroll’s lapped Williams at the restart.
Verstappen was able to comfortably keep Vettel at bay in spite of the damage to mount the rostrum for the first time in 2018, behind Hamilton and Bottas, who celebrated Mercedes’ first 1-2 of 2018.
Daniel Ricciardo had a lonely run to fifth position, having gone wide through the Turn 9 gravel early on, before suffering a spin later on, finishing over 20 seconds down on nearest opponent Vettel.
Magnussen survived the lap one drama to take sixth, a whopping 50 seconds behind Ricciardo, but a comfortable 35 seconds in front of Renault’s Carlos Sainz Jr.
Fernando Alonso followed his compatriot home to take more points for McLaren in eighth place, having eventually worked his way past fast-starting Charles Leclerc at the post-VSC restart.
Alonso, though, was the only McLaren driver to reach the chequered flag after team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne lost drive, albeit while running outside of the points-paying positions.
Sergio Perez took on fresh tyres when his team-mate exited and moved up into ninth place, while Leclerc added another point to Sauber’s tally by rounding out the top 10.
Williams’ Stroll displayed comparatively stronger race pace compared to the team’s one-lap form and finished within five seconds of Leclerc to take 11th.
Brendon Hartley, Marcus Ericsson and the thrice-lapped Sergey Sirotkin, who had an excursion through Turn 9’s gravel at the VSC restart, completed the finishers.
Monaco will host the sixth round of the season, which takes place from May 24 to 27
