Lewis Hamilton was fined for undoing his seal belts after he sealed a sensational victory starting from 10th on the grid in the F1 Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo on Sunday.

After crossing the line, the Mercedes driver undid his belts to grab a Brazilian national flag from a marshal before setting off again on his victory lap.

According to the stewards' verdict, it was a 5,000 euros (about $5,700) fine for Hamilton with an additional 20,000 euros (about $22,850), which is suspended through the end of 2022, F1.com reported.

The ruling said, "The driver of car 44, Lewis Hamilton, undid his seat belts on the in-lap at the end of the race."

"While the Stewards are sympathetic to the desire to celebrate, it is fundamentally unsafe to undo the seat belts while the car is in motion. Slow speeds in these cars are very fast for an unrestrained occupant."

"Further, Formula 1 drivers set the example for junior categories. It is critical that junior category drivers learn the importance of using all the safety devices of the car at all times."

Hamilton said he could not remember "another weekend like this."

"Did I think we could come from last? I don't know what was possible but I just gave it everything and this has definitely been probably one of the best weekends, if not the best weekend I have experienced in probably my whole career," said Hamilton.

"Mentally you can just think it's over, it's impossible, but then nothing is if you put your mind to it. That's really why we just cultivated a positive mental attitude and went in fighting, guns blazing," he added.

Red Bull racer Max Verstappen finished second after the race and he wrote on Twitter, "It was a good battle and we gave it our all, but just lacked a bit of pace. We still scored good points and will bounce back."

Hamilton has reduced Verstappen's lead from 21 to 14 points, and Mercedes lead the constructors' championship by 11 points.

(With input from agencies)