2Lewis Hamilton had to wait for 0 hours until the expected severe sentence once again dealt a heavy blow to the seven-time Formula One world champion in the championship battle with Max Verstappen. The Sao Paulo match administrator classified the Hamilton Mercedes used in qualifying as non-compliant. The British lost the first place on the grid in the sprint and had to complete the “impossible completion” at the end of the race. Mission”.
His chasing game for more than 24 laps ended in an excellent fifth place-and Verstappen was fined 50,000 euros for his violation, and finished second after Hamilton teammate Valtteri Bottas (Finland). The score crossed the finish line from this starting position (6:00pm CET/sky) on Sunday, and it is most likely to further expand the current lead of 21 points ahead of Hamilton.
For Hamilton, the 100-time Grand Prix champion, he started the Grand Prix from tenth place due to the replacement of the engine, which will again have to do with the damage limit-he should actually make up for it. The steward believed that the Mercedes he used on Friday did not comply with the rules; when the drag reduction system (DRS) was used, the adjustable tail was driven too far, and Hamilton clearly gained a speed advantage on the straights.
“We assume that damage occurred while driving on the route. However, we were unable to verify this hypothesis because we had no access to these parts before,” a Mercedes spokesperson explained. The steward found that “the reason for the failure of the test is more “accident” than intentional behavior, but this assessment does not protect Hamilton from punishment. Mercedes, which has won all world championship titles in the past seven years, decided not to protest. Because this will “put all the results of the weekend at risk.”
Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) finished 10th in the sprint, and Mick Schumacher finished 19th in Haas. In the third and final sprint of the season, Bottas used softer tires to surpass Verstappen at the start, and Hamilton occupied six positions in the first lap. After that, Verstappen did not take too much risk, Hamilton moved forward with difficulty but consistently.
The butler also investigated Verstappen, but left a fine of 50,000 euros. Immediately after qualifying on Friday, Verstappen checked the rear wing of his Red Bull and touched it, then he repeated this on Hamilton’s Mercedes. In this way, Verstappen violated the Parc-ferme rule.
Hamilton went to Brazil 19 points behind Red Bull driver Verstappen. If the Dutchman leaves Sao Paulo by at least 24 points, Hamilton will not be able to drive his opponent out of the top of the world championship standings by himself in the remaining three games.
