Lewis Hamilton's hopes of claiming a fifth successive win at the British Grand Prix were spectacularly dented as he collided with Kimi Raikkonen on the opening lap at Silverstone.

Hamilton started on pole, seeking to become only the second man - after the great Ayrton Senna - to win the same F1 race in five consecutive years.

However, the Briton was passed by championship rival Sebastian Vettel in the dash to the first corner and also lost second spot to Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas before a shunt with Raikkonen sent him tumbling down the field.

Raikkonen looked to come up the inside of Hamilton into turn three, but instead crashed into the reigning world champion.

The Finn barely lost ground as a result of the incident, but was duly handed a 10-second penalty by race stewards for causing the collision.

Hamilton, meanwhile, dropped way down the field but was able to climb back into the top 10 almost instantly, despite initially saying, "I think my car's broken, man," over team radio.

Vettel, who leads the championship by one point over Hamilton, took advantage of the drama behind by building an early lead.