Daniel Ricciardo has led the chorus from rival drivers and teams in praising Lewis Hamilton after the Mercedes driver clinched a sixth world championship in the US Grand Prix.

Hamilton finished second to teammate Valtteri Bottas in the race, but claimed an unassailable 67-point lead heading into the final two Grands Prix of the season.

Renault rival Ricciardo finished a commendable sixth after starting ninth, and ran in the top five for much of the race – but was quick to catch Hamilton afterwards, the two drivers embracing in a touching moment.

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Ricciardo was one of the first drivers to congratulate the newly-crowned world champion as Hamilton celebrated with his team and family – as well as Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey – in parc ferme.

The Australian, who has raced alongside Hamilton in F1 since 2011, paid tribute to the Briton’s “impressive” consistency.

“As a fellow racer, all you can really do is respect what he’s done,” Ricciardo said after the race.

“There’ll always be people saying, ‘great car, great team’ … yes, maybe.

“But to hold that level week in, week out … there’s no much more involved in this sport than just driving, there’s the circus.

“For him to hold that level for all these years, at the top of the circus, you can only just respect that.

“Six titles, not many at all have done that. I tip my hat to him.”

“Six titles … I tip my hat to him.” Picture: Dan Istitene Source: Getty Images

Several rival drivers and teams up and down the lane congratulated Hamilton on the success, including his closest rival Bottas, despite his own disappointment in missing out on the title. Long-time adversary Sebastian Vettel retired from the race, but made his way into the podium cooldown room to personally congratulate Hamilton.

Away from Hamilton’s historic day, Ricciardo was delighted with sixth in a race he described as one of the most fun he’s competed in all season.

The 30-year-old battled with Vettel and McLaren’s Lando Norris early, and was pipped by a hard-charging Alex Albon late to end up sixth.

While McLaren is seemingly too far ahead in the constructors’ standings, Ricciardo was pleased to beat both papaya cars home.

“We reached our target of beating both McLarens, so that’s really pleasing,” he said.

“It was a strong race and we showed good pace. I enjoyed the battle with Lando as I passed him and he passed me back a couple of times at the start and then put some pressure on towards the end.

“We held on for sixth, so it’s solid points for the team with Nico in the top 10 as well.”