Lewis Hamilton vs. Max Verstappen: Timeline of Brazil Grand Prix incident as decision revealed

The 2021 F1 World Championship is shaping up to be one of the most exhilarating and neck-and-neck seasons we have witnessed, all thanks to Lewis Hamilton and current WDC leader Max Verstappen. At last weekend's Brazil Grand Prix we witnessed history being made with an exceptional drive by Lewis Hamilton, winning the race from P10, thus reducing the gap to his Dutch rival to 14 points.

However, with Max in the lead, a dramatic incident on Turn 4 of lap 48 saw Max Verstappen appearing to force his and Hamilton's car off the track, allowing Verstappen to retain his lead temporarily. The incident was immediately noted by the stewards.

Just as Hamilton attempted an attack from Turn 1, Verstappen's maneuver to fight back seemed to push the two cars off, an incident that Mercedes seemed confident would result in a penalty for Verstappen. This was indicated in a radio message addressing the incident to teammate Valtteri Bottas.

With no contact between the two cars and limited live footage of the incident available at the time, it was announced by the FIA that no investigation was necessary for the incident involving Car 44 and Car 33. The frustration from this decision was made abundantly evident in a heated discussion between Mercedes and Race Director Michael Masi.

On lap 59 of the Brazil Grand Prix with 12 laps to go, Lewis Hamilton finally overtook Max Verstappen and led the race to the end, making it his 101st win in F1 and arguably one of his best weekends so far.

This, however, was not the end of the aftermath of the incident. Shortly after the race, the much-awaited onboard footage of the incident was released. The front-facing camera footage from Verstappen's car gives a clear view of the incident, bringing to light additional details of the incident.

In response to the new footage of Verstappen onboard, Mercedes formally requested the stewards for a Right of Review of the incident between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen on Tuesday, November 16. Mercedes made the request due to the fact that the footage brought more evidence that was not available when the stewards decided not to investigate the incident further.

---

Request to Review the Lewis Hamilton-Max Verstappen incident has been denied

The FIA has denied the request by Mercedes to review the incident on Turn 4 at the Brazil Grand Prix between Hamilton and Verstappen.

Here's what Toto Wolff and Christian Horner had to say about the FIA's decision:

With 3 races to go and 14 points separating the two, the fight for the title between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen is now closer than ever.