Hamilton said after the race he had slowed when he saw the chequered flag but
carried on nonetheless.
“I thought I was starting my last lap and I glanced up and saw something
waving, and realised it was the chequered flag,” he said.
“I lifted and lost about a second-and-a-half but the team said no, no, keep
going.
“They told me the race stopped there. If the radio had failed and I had slowed
down and Nico came past, that would have really sucked. Thank God, it
didn’t.”
Kobayashi said it was a “shame” his pass for 17th did not count because of the
mistake.
Article 43.2 of F1’s sporting regulations states: “Should for any reason
the end-of-race signal be given before the leading car completes the
scheduled number of laps, or the prescribed time has been completed, the
race will be deemed to have finished when the leading car last crossed the
line before the signal was given.”