McLarens Lewis Hamilton is the 30th - and youngest-ever - world champion. Lady Luck was on his side after title rival Felipe Massa dominated at Interlagos. The Brazilian crossed the line first after a pluperfect performance - and seemed to have achieved the impossible - as Hamilton trailed in sixth.
Rain in the closing stages had prompted the first five - Massa, Renaults Fernando Alonso, Ferraris Kimi Raikkonen, Hamilton and Toro Rossos Sebastian Vettel - to pit for wet tyres. Crucially, Timo Glock, running sixth for Toyota, did not.
Massa, Alonso and Raikkonen resumed in first to third places, but Hamilton and Vettel fell behind Glock. That was still good enough for Hamilton. But then, under pressure on the 70th lap, he made a crucial mistake and slid wide. It was all Vettel needed and the Toro Rosso driver pushed through to snatch away the fifth place that Hamilton needed to become champion.
Even as Massa crossed the line, Hamilton was only sixth and the Brazilian was the champion. But as Vettel and Hamilton slammed out of the final corner, Glocks Toyota was slowing in front of them, the German struggling for grip on his increasingly unsuitable rubber. From the jaws of defeat, the British driver snatched back the crown in one of the most dramatic title deciders in history. No Hollywood script could have been more exciting.
Rain at the start had added to the drama, and saw Red Bulls David Coulthard make an undignified exit from his last Grand Prix after he was tapped into a spin by Williams Nico Rosberg, which then involved Rosbergs team mate Kazuki Nakajima. Coulthard was out on the spot, while Renaults Nelson Piquet went off in Turn Three and was also out.
Massa controlled things throughout, with Toyotas Jarno Trulli soon falling back from an initially strong second-place run as everyone began changing from wet to dry-weather tyres after seven laps. Vettel, running a different fuel strategy to the other leaders, was always a threat, running second ahead of Alonso and pressuring Massa several times before stopping earlier for fuel. Raikkonen ran some way behind this trio, but closed in rapidly on Alonso in the final stages and was close to him as Massa crossed the line 13.2s ahead.
Hamilton took few chances, was always around fourth or fifth, and looked easily on target until that dramatic battle at the end. Glock finished sixth, limping across the line well ahead of McLarens Heikki Kovalainen, and Trulli, the final points scorers.
Mark Webber brought his Red Bull home ninth, ahead of the BMW Saubers of Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica, the team thus failing to score for the first time in 2008. Rosberg was 12th ahead of Hondas Jenson Button, Toro Rossos Sebastien Bourdais (whose chances of points were ruined after a clash with Trulli in Turn One), Hondas Rubens Barrichello, Force Indias Adrian Sutil, Nakajima and Giancarlo Fisichella. The Italian Force India driver was the first to stop for dry tyres on Lap Two, and ran as high as fifth before the inevitable decline as faster machinery hit its stride.
After those gripping final laps there was almost disbelief at McLaren as Hamilton scraped home, but Massa had that covered as he graciously conceded defeat.
We need to congratulate Lewis, he said. He did a great championship, and he scored more points than us, so deserves to be champion.
Ferraris consolation was to win the constructors world championship but, ultimately, and in the most dramatic circumstances imaginable, this was Lewis Hamiltons and McLarens day.
Felipe Massa at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix
The Autódromo José Carlos Pace aka Interlagos track of the Brazilian Grand Prix
Ferrari driver Felipe Massa won yesterday's FIA Formula One (F1) 2008 Grande Prêmio Santander Brazilian Grand Prix at Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo, Brazil.
Lewis Hamilton won the championship
Lewis Hamilton, who drives for McLaren, was able to hold on to take the F1 Driver's Championship. He had a seven point lead in the season standings entering the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Fernando Alonso came second while his Renault team mate Nelson Piquet Jr. slipped in the Senna's S-curve and broke his car's rear due to the wet track.

Massa's teammate Kimi Räikkönen came third.

On the final lap, Sebastian Vettel passed Lewis Hamilton, with help from the lapped Kubica, seemingly taking the championship chance from the McLaren driver.

However, in the short straight before the final corner "Juncao",Timo Glock lost traction due to being on dry weather tyres in the wet conditions and lost his position to Vettel. Hamilton also passed him to win the Drivers' championship of the 2008 Formula One season.

Massa missed out on the season title by just one point. Ferrari maintained the lead over McLaren to win the F1 Constructors' Championship.