Lewis Hamilton closed the gap on Formula One world championship leader Nico Rosberg to 12 points by winning a Brazilian Grand Prix that came close to being abandoned amid wretched weather at Interlagos on Sunday

Hamilton started on pole and remained untroubled at the head of the pack in Sao Paulo, as persistent heavy rain wreaked havoc among the field behind him.

Rosberg, who benefited from a Red Bull misjudgement to regain second place from Max Verstappen, retained top spot in the drivers' championship standings on 367 points, with defending champion and Mercedes team-mate Hamilton on 355 going into the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi later this month.

Third place at the Yas Marina circuit will be enough for Rosberg to claim his first crown regardless of Hamilton's performance.

The English pole-sitter quickly got clear when racing began after a safety car start on Sunday, leaving Rosberg battling to hold off Verstappen in the heavy spray.

Having dramatically passed Rosberg and successfully defended from the German after recovering from a spin, Verstappen suffered when he was forced to return to the pit lane for full wet tyres, a brief flirtation with the intermediate compound ruined by more torrid weather.  

He demonstrated extraordinary determination to move back up from 16th to third, forcing Sebastian Vettel onto the grass in the process in yet another instalment in the mounting rivalry between the two men.