Hamilton tops practice in Brazil, gets 5-place grid penalty
By MAURICIO SAVARESE
AP Sports Writer
SAO PAULO (AP) — Lewis Hamilton had the fastest lap at Friday’s practice session of the Brazilian Grand Prix after his team decided to give him a new engine. The seven-time champion received a five-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race due to the change, making it even harder to decrease his points deficit to Red Bull rival Max Verstappen at Interlagos. It’s the second time the Mercedes driver has exceeded the limit of three engines for the season. Hamilton trails Verstappen by 19 points. The decision by Mercedes to change the internal combustion engine will not affect Hamilton’s starting position in Saturday’s qualifying sprint race.