SAO PAULO: An incident-packed Brazilian Grand Prix was red-flagged to a halt after 20 rain-soaked and chaotic laps on Sunday when Kimi Raikkonen crashed on the main straight in his Ferrari.
Raikkonen, taking part in his 250th grand prix, was unhurt in the spectacular smash and walked back to the drenched Interlagos pits.
The accident came only 10 seconds after the Safety Car had been called in for the second time, having been used to start the race.
Lewis Hamilton led the race from his 60th pole position ahead of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg, who can clinch his first drivers’ championship if he wins the race when it finally restarts.
The race started behind the Safety Car and the field ran in order for seven laps before they began racing in the treacherous conditions.
Frenchman Romain Grosjean had crashed in his Haas on the pre-race installation and formation laps and was out of the contest before the start.
"From hero to zero in less than 24 hours. I feel so bad for the guys... I wasn't even flat-out," said Grosjean, who was seventh on the grid.
Swede Marcus Ericsson crashed after 12 laps in his Sauber, losing control at the start of the straight.
His car ended up parked across the pit-lane entry, blocking the road, but both Red Bull drivers steered round his vehicle to enter the pits.
They were reported to be under investigation by the race stewards as the race continued before Raikkonen’s high-speed accident.
Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo was handed a five-second penalty while Williams driver Felipe Massa, in his last home race, received the same punishment for overtaking before the Safety Car line.