Lewis Hamilton's hopes of retaining his Formula One world title have been dealt another blow after being hit with a five-place grid penalty for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The seven-time champion, who trails leader Max Verstappen by 19 points with four races remaining, has been demoted following Mercedes' latest engine change.
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It is a second grid penalty in four races for Hamilton, who lost 10 places at the Turkish Grand Prix after having a new engine fitted. He went on to finish fifth in that race after starting in 11th.
Hamilton's penalty was confirmed midway through Friday's first practice session in Brazil, shortly after Mercedes announced he would have a new unit fitted.
The penalty will not affect the 36-year-old's starting position in Saturday's sprint race at Interlagos, but he can now no longer start Sunday's race any higher than sixth.
BREAKING: Lewis has taken a new Internal Combustion Engine for this event - his fifth of the season - and will take a five-place grid penalty for Sunday’s #BrazilGP pic.twitter.com/Fk4lSu2DRR
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) November 12, 2021
