Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi made contact with Jenson Button on Turn 3 of the first lap, sending the McLaren driver to an early retirement. Kobayashi was handed a drive-through penalty for causing the collision. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg also went out on the first lap.
Hamilton, who is fourth in the standings 62 points behind Vettel, had a rear suspension problem with his McLaren and even got a piece of astroturf from the edge of the track stuck under his car late in the race.
"It was pretty bad, pretty bad" Hamilton said. "It basically stalled my defuser so I didn't have any down force so it was tricky to try to even keep 10th."
