Max Verstappen emerged triumphant in a chaotic German Grand Prix that saw Lewis Hamilton pay the price for a crash and Sebastian Vettel surge from the back of the grid to a landmark podium.

Red Bull driver Verstappen claimed his second win of the season as changeable conditions at Hockenheim, which switched between wet and dry, saw strategy fly out the window and numerous safety cars deployed.

Pole-sitter Hamilton was leading the race when he lost control under the safety car at turn 17 on lap 30 and went into the barriers, damaging his front wing next to Charles Leclerc's marooned Ferrari.

The Briton entered the pits illegally and was hit with a five-second time penalty, which he served when trading intermediates for slicks as the track dried out in the closing stages.

Hamilton span out and fell to the back of the field and Mercedes' 200th grand prix as a works team ended miserably as Valtteri Bottas crashed to bring the safety car out yet again.

Vettel, who started 20th due to a turbo problem that stopped him setting a time in qualifying, took advantage and delighted the home fans by passing Carlos Sainz Jr, Lance Stroll and Daniil Kvyat to earn his 50th podium for Ferrari in stunning fashion.