Hamilton trails Verstappen by 19 points before this weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix, with a maximum of 107 available over the remaining four races. The Sao Paulo Grand Prix is the last of three events being run to the new ‘sprint’ format this season. There are points for the top three finishers in the sprint – three for the winner, two for second and one for third – but Hamilton said the availability of more points over the weekend worked both ways. Teams are facing a race against time to get their cars ready for the first practice session on Friday after a delay in some freight travelling from last weekend’s race in Mexico to Brazil.

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