The Qatar Grand Prix was one of the recent blunders made by the one dominant team, Mercedes, and the reason behind it was none other than Lewis Hamilton.
The race day ended in a disaster for them as Hamilton, during his attempt to overtake his teammate George Russell and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen who were right ahead of him, collided with the former during the very first lap. As the 38-year-old retired to the garage, Russell went on to finish the race in the fourth spot.
After this reckless move, Lewis Hamilton is facing the wrath of the FIA. The governing body has deemed this action to be a breach of the regulations for which he apologized. Lewis was charged with a penalty of $45,640 but it was later suspended.
So, you don’t want to single Lewis Hamilton out but you’re going to anyway. I’m assuming you are going to speak to all the other drivers, including Max and Logan who have crossed a live track in recent years? No? Your bias is showing. #F1xed https://t.co/g89cXRqJo6
— Andrew E (@andrewje_home) October 15, 2023
But the reason behind the scrutiny is not what you might think. However, this did not go down well with the fans who deemed the FIA to have a bias towards the seven-time world champion.
The FIA aren’t even hiding their prejudice against Lewis Hamilton anymore. If they actually cared about “impressions created on younger drivers”, they wouldn’t have manipulated and rigged an entire WDC in front of the entire world.
— t 🌿 (@formullana) October 15, 2023
Fans and spectators came out in his defense and pointed out their prejudice-driven judgment. As many were unhappy with this decision, a few even how the reigning World Champion, Max Verstappen pulled a similar act during the Italian Grand Prix of 2021 which received no such investigations.
Why did the FIA penalize Lewis Hamilton at the Qatar GP?
But the reason behind the scrutiny is not what you might think. Post the crash, Hamilton got out of his car and decided to walk across the track in order to retire to the pitstop when the race was still going on. In their statement, the FIA noted that Hamilton expressed remorse at the subsequent stewards’ hearing.
He admitted that it was a major safety violation to cross a live track. The extent of Hamilton’s effect on younger drivers, nevertheless, differentiates this instance from others.
This is mental…
Ok so you see Lewis Hamilton running across a track here after he crashed out of the Qatar Grand Prix last week?
This is the one he got a €50,000 fine for.The FIA are reviewing their decision for this, and you won’t believe why: pic.twitter.com/U3wBONMXZl
— Formula God (@formula1god) October 15, 2023
The statement read, “The FIA notes that Lewis was apologetic during the subsequent stewards’ hearing into the incident and acknowledged that the crossing was a serious safety breach. However, in view of his role model status, the FIA is concerned about the impression his actions may have created on younger drivers.” The “role model status” reason behind the act did not please the fans and the team.
The frequent clashes between the FIA and Lewis Hamilton are more common than one might think. This case stood out in particular due to the kind of influence he holds.
In this context, the FIA’s decision to look into the occurrence is unusual. Their objective is to highlight the gravity of entering a live track rather than simply passing judgment on Hamilton.