Lauda blasts Hamilton penalty

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Lauda was left incensed after the race stewards handed Hamilton a retrospective 25-second drive-through penalty for 'cutting a corner and gaining an advantage'.

"This is the worst judgment in the history of F1, the most perverted judgment I have ever seen," said three-time champion Lauda. "It's absolutely unacceptable when three functionaries (stewards) influence the championship like this."

He added: "Hamilton did nothing wrong. He was on the outside, he then let him (Raikkonen) by, which is the rule, and afterwards he passed him.

"There was nothing special in what happened. Hamilton did the right thing in letting him by before again passing him."

The incident concerned, at the end of lap 42 of the 44-lap race and as rain began to fall, allowed Hamilton to move into the lead ahead of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.

However, the 23-year-old immediately conceded the lead back to the Finn, prior to conjuring a superb overtaking manoeuvre into the La Source hairpin.

On a greasy track, an enthralling cat-and-mouse game followed that culminated in Raikkonen sliding into a wall and Hamilton claiming victory.

But two hours after the race the stewards intervened, awarding a penalty that demoted Hamilton to third, and as far as Lauda is concerned, also threw the sport into chaos.