Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport driver Lewis Hamilton (44) of Team Great Britain drives during the final practice session for the United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Lewis Hamilton disqualified from Sao Paolo Grand Prix qualifying

By Adam Stites | Last updated 11/13/21

Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton saw his chances at winning a fifth consecutive championship take a big hit with his disqualification from Sao Paolo Grand Prix qualifying Saturday.

Hamilton, 36, was set to start out front in the Sunday morning race after finishing qualifying with the fastest time Friday. Instead, he'll begin in the back of the field after his rear wing was deemed illegal by race stewards, Formula One announced.

Here is how we will now line up for #F1Sprint #BrazilGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/KYXNJtOiXT
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 13, 2021

To make matters worse for Hamilton, the qualifying mishap pushed Max Verstappen into the pole position.

Verstappen, 24, has a 19-point lead over Hamilton in the season standings with just four races left. The Dutch driver has been in Formula One since he was 17, but is on the verge of winning his first career championship.

Adding more drama to the saga was a video posted on Friday that showed Verstappen inspecting and touching the exact part of Hamilton's car that was later deemed illegal. Verstappen was fined €50,000 for touching Hamilton's car, but stewards said "no direct harm" had been caused by the contact.

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