Mercedes announces launch date for 2022 F1 car
Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team announced the launch date of their new car, the W13, which will be unveiled on Friday 18 February.
Lewis Hamilton
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Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen to be interviewed by FIA
The FIA’s internal investigation towards a disputed 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi might lead to interviews with both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton will stay in F1 if Michael Masi leaves
Mercedes and the FIA have reached an agreement that will allow Mercedes to receive some justice despite the fact that they are still unhappy and angry with the events that occurred in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix denying Lewis Hamilton his eighth championship win.
Lewis Hamilton will decide F1 return after the Abu Dhabi inquiry
Seven-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton will decide whether to race in the 2022 season or retire dependent on the results of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix investigation.
Hamilton receives birthday tributes as he turns 37
On January 7, 2022, Lewis Hamilton turned 37, and tributes flooded in from all over the world, including from a world-famous football star and a tennis legend.
Lewis Hamilton sold his Pagani Zonda for €10m
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton sold his “favourite car” Pagani Zonda for €10million as a way of promoting environmental awareness.
2021 season revealed how F1 community can be ‘toxic’ and ‘scary’
In what was described as the biggest championship battle of all time, the 2021 season also revealed how dangerous and terrifying the F1 community can be.
McLaren fears on Norris move to Mercedes end after Hamilton is tipped to race in 2022
If Lewis Hamilton retires from Formula One, McLaren driver Lando Norris is widely expected to take his place at Mercedes.
Hamilton snubs messages from new FIA President
Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the newly elected head of the FIA, claims he has reached out to Lewis Hamilton but has not received a response. Since losing the Formula One title to Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi, Hamilton has kept a low profile and avoided the media. In the aftermath of the controversial race, the Briton was knighted at Windsor Castle and took part in the Mercedes team’s Constructors’ title celebrations at Brackely, but he has otherwise remained under the radar, avoiding the FIA’s prize-giving ceremony in Paris and avoiding social media. Sulayem told Spain’s Marca at the start of the Dakar rally-raid in Saudi Arabia this weekend that he hasn’t received a response from the seven-time world champion after sending him countless messages. “I sent him messages, yes, I think he is not 100 percent ready yet and I understand his position,” Sulayem said. According to the FIA president, Hamilton broke F1’s sporting rules by not attending last month’s gala in Paris, and he has promised to hold him accountable. “But there are also rules that must be accepted by all drivers. For me, there is no particular team or driver, out of respect for the integrity of the FIA. “But I cannot judge until I have all the data and the first thing on my agenda is to thoroughly analyse what happened in Abu Dhabi. “In the end, we are all human and the stress and pressure were there, so I think it will all work out. You have to look more to the future than to the past.” Despite a flurry of reports that Hamilton may call it a day in Formula One, Sulayem is skeptical that the 103-time Grand Prix champion will retire. “No, I don’t think so, they are rumours…” added Ben Sulayem. “Has he declared that he will not return? No. “When you are a driver, you speak for yourself and not what others say about you. “I trust that this is not the case, Lewis is an important part of the sport and of F1, his achievements. Verstappen is there… I am sure we will find a very exciting F1 next season.”
F1 bookie pays out on bets for Lewis Hamilton to win 2021 championship
Paddy Power, a well-known bookmaker, has declared “justice is served” after paying out on bets on Lewis Hamilton to win the 2021 Formula One World Drivers’ Championship. Following Lewis Hamilton’s loss in the 2021 Formula One World Drivers’ Championship, Paddy Power has decided to pay up to gamblers who bet on the seven-time World Champion adding to his score at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2021. Hamilton dominated the race until a late Safety Car allowed Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to take a chance on new tyres. With a lap to go, Race Control brought in the Safety Car to clear lapped cars out of the way of Verstappen, and Hamilton lost the race and the championship as a result, as Verstappen raced by on the final lap. The race’s contentious conclusion generated outrage, with Mercedes filing protests in the immediate aftermath due to the way the Safety Car period ended. Both appeals were dismissed, with Mercedes opting out of the process. Normally, such a turn of events would leave gamblers shaking their heads in disbelief, but Paddy Power chose to compensate both drivers after calling the season finale a “sporting injustice.” “Max Verstappen needed a miracle to win, and one duly arrived in the form of a dodgy decision from the race organisers who appeared to rip up the rulebook and go rogue for the final lap of the race,” said a statement on their website. “We have decided to pay out on both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton to win the World Drivers Championship. “And, for good measure, we’ve paid out on both Verstappen and Hamilton to win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix too. “Consider justice served,” concluded the message.
Ben Sulayem very sure Lewis Hamilton will race in 2022
Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes Lewis Hamilton will return to Mercedes for the 2022 Formula One season. Despite Lewis Hamilton’s radio quiet since losing the 2021 Formula One World Championship on the penultimate lap of the final race, newly elected FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem is certain that the seven-time World Champion will return to racing in 2022. Since that race weekend, rumors have circulated that Hamilton may not return in 2022, rumors that Hamilton has not sought to refute. While Mercedes has stated that its star driver will take up the baton again in 2022 at the start of the new regulation cycle, it is still possible that he will choose to retire. However, Ben Sulayem, who took over as FIA President from Jean Todt a week before Christmas, is certain that F1’s most illustrious driver will return and will not simply walk away. “No, I don’t think so, they are rumours…” Ben Sulayem said in an interview at the start of the Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia. “Has he declared that he will not return? No. When you are a driver, you speak for yourself and not what others say about you.” “I trust that this is not the case, Lewis is an important part of the sport and of F1, his achievements. Verstappen is there… I am sure we will find a very exciting F1 next season.” Ben Sulayem said he understood Hamilton’s dissatisfaction with his decision not to attend the mandated FIA Prize-Giving Gala in Paris four days after the season finale. With Hamilton potentially facing disciplinary action from the FIA for failing to attend, the President stated that after reaching out to Hamilton, he has received no response. “I sent him messages, yes, I think he is not 100 percent ready yet and I understand his position,” he explained. “But there are also rules that must be accepted by all drivers. For me, there is no particular team or driver, out of respect for the integrity of the FIA. “But I cannot judge until I have all the data and the first thing on my agenda is to thoroughly analyse what happened in Abu Dhabi. “In the end, we are all human and the stress and pressure were there, so I think it will all work out. You have to look more to the future than to the past.”
Mercedes drops a hint that Lewis Hamilton will race in 2022
The Mercedes team has hinted there is no doubt Lewis Hamilton will return to racing in 2022. Mercedes Formula 1 team shared a social media update recently suggesting that Lewis Hamilton will drive one of their cars in 2022. Since the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, rumors have swirled that Hamilton may not return in 2022, due to the nature of his title loss to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Despite being in the lead for most of the race, Hamilton was overtaken by Verstappen on the final lap after a controversial Safety Car intervened late in the race. Apart from one TV interview before the podium and a public appearance to receive his knighthood in the UK, Hamilton has remained silent since that day and even removed every follower from his own social media accounts. With the image of Hamilton, Mercedes posted a status saying, “Adversity causes some to break; others to break records.” Having said that, it is likely that Hamilton will return in 2022 in a bid to surpass the record he shares with Michael Schumacher – seven Drivers’ World Championship titles. Earlier this week, Hamilton’s brother, Nicolas, offered an update and revealed that the seven-time Champ is currently taking a break from social media. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said that Hamilton was left “shell-shocked” by the title outcome, while Helmut Marko believes he will return for next season.
Rosberg left in ‘pain’ after Hamilton defeat
Lewis Hamilton’s former Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg was devastated to miss the championship title in 2021 after his old teammate missed out. Despite Lewis Hamilton missing out on the Formula One world title in Abu Dhabi last month, Nico Rosberg said he suffered ‘incredible pain’ after his former teammate was unable to take the crown. In December, Hamilton was left heartbroken when he lost out on a record eighth world title to eventual winner Max Verstappen on the final lap of the season. Apparently, the English driver wasn’t the only one to feel despair after the dramatic finish, as his former teammate Rosberg expressed the same sentiment. “I felt pain, incredible pain. I don’t have anything to do with Mercedes now, but of course it’s my family from before, and an incredible pain,” Nico Rosberg said. “They were 99 percent sure they were going to win the World Championship until there were three laps to go.” “After losing it, and losing it in a fight like that, where they couldn’t do anything because the tyres had 50 laps on them, unbelievable pain.” After Verstappen took advantage of a contentious call by FIA director Michael Masi, the Abu Dhabi race was a dramatic one, but no doubt tainted with controversy too. With just a handful of laps to go, Masi controversially allowed only five lapped drivers to pass the safety car, eliminating the comfortable lead Hamilton had over Verstappen. A one-lap shootout was the only option open to the title rivals after the safety car and lapped racers cleared the track, and it was the fresh tyres of the Dutchman that gave him the edge late on. Rosberg regrets that the FIA made such a strange decision, which left many in the racing world bewildered. Mercedes manager Toto Wolff admitted that Hamilton ‘lost faith’ after how things played out, much like his old teammate. “He won the World Championship until the last lap, and then everything is taken away from you from one second,” the Mercedes boss said. ‘Of course you lose faith because you can’t understand what has just happened.” “’I just need to do the utmost I can to help him to overcome the feelings that he has in order for him to return strong with a love of the sport and trust in the decision-making of the sport next year.”
Signatures for a petition to make Lewis Hamilton 2021 champion get to 40,000
A petition attempting to make Sir Lewis Hamilton the 2021 F1 world champion has now been signed by almost 40,000 people. The season-ending 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix got criticism from many Formula 1 fans as race director Michael Masi was accused of manufacturing a grand stand finish between Hamilton and Max Verstappen. A crash for Williams’ Nicholas Latifi brought out a late Safety Car, and Red Bull brought their Dutch driver into the pits for fresh tyres. Mercedes kept Hamilton out on track, fearing that he would lose tack position and could have ended up P2, had there been insufficient time to restart the race. One of the time constraints appeared in the form of lapped runners, five of whom were between Hamilton and Verstappen the two race leaders. Race director Michael Masi initially ruled that none of the lapped cars would be permitted to pass the Safety Car, before in a strange turn of events deciding to let the five at the front pass, but none of the others. Verstappen was then able to pass Hamilton on the very last lap to claim the championship. It led an angered Hamilton to say on the radio that the race had been “manipulated”, and Mercedes instantly protested the race result. Upon seeing their protests denied, the Constructors’ Champions lodged an intention to appeal, but eventually withdrew this. A petition was then started to overrule the championship result and award Hamilton his eighth championship. The person who created the petition, Patel Gordon-Bennett, argues that what transpired in Abu Dhabi sends a “very wrong message to youngsters and future racers.” In his petition, he wrote: “I believe that justice was not served on Sunday December 12, 2021 when the FIA stewards denied Lewis Hamilton of his win of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. “With less than 1 lap remaining, some lapped cars were allowed to pass the safety car, which does not comply with the rules of the F1 sport. “This gave rival opponent Max Verstappen the opportunity to overtake Lewis Hamilton and win the Grand Prix. If you are an advocate of justice, honesty and fairness, please sign this petition. “Leaving this decision as it stands will send a very wrong message to youngsters and future racers.”
Lewis Hamilton is taking a break from ‘very toxic’ social media – Nicolas Hamilton
Nicolas Hamilton, brother to Lewis Hamilton disclosed that the seven-time world champion is taking a break off ‘very toxic’ social media. This comes as Hamilton went quiet on social media after season finale in Abu Dhabi where title rival Max Verstappen claimed the championship title after a last minute dash following a controversial Safety Car. Nicolas Hamilton who is a racer in British Touring Car Champion revealed the reason for Lewis Hamilton’s absence from social media over his Twitch channel. “I think he is just having a bit of a social media break,” Hamilton explained. “Which I don’t blame him for. Social media can be a very toxic place.” “Social media can be a very toxic place. But he’s cool, though. He’s fine.” The pair were spending time with their family, he added. “He’s cool though, he’s fine. He’s watching the kids ski at the moment.” Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff told Motorsport-total.com recently that Hamilton “simply lacks words” after the controversial ending to the 2021 season. “We are all wavering in emotions, Lewis most of all,” Wolff told Motorsport-total.com. “He was winning the World Championship until the last lap, and then everything is taken away from you from one second [to the next]. Of course, you lose faith because you can’t understand what has just happened. “The silence is there, of course, because he simply lacks words as well.”
Toto Wolff says Hamilton may end his F1 career after Abu Dhabi GP controversy
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has revealed that Lewis Hamilton may quit Formula 1 racing after getting disappointed in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season finale. Hamilton lost the race that would see him claim a record breaking eighth championship title to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen after a controversial last lap Safety Car. The directives given by Formula 1 Race Director Michael Masi allowed the the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to overtake the Safety Car despite initially saying it would not be allowed. The Safety Car cut Hamilton’s 10 second lead and Verstappen got the upper hand winning the race. This got Mercedes disappointed by the absolute turn of events with Wolff saying the race controversy got him and Hamilton ‘disillusioned’ with Formula 1 as a sport. “It is going to take a long time to digest what has happened on Sunday….. I don’t think we will ever get over it, that’s not possible,” Wolff told reporters. “Lewis and I are disillusioned at the moment. We’re not disillusioned with the sport. We love the sport with every bone in our body. And we love it because the stopwatch never lies.” “But if we break that fundamental principle of spotting fairness and authenticity of the sport, then suddenly the stopwatch doesn’t become relevant anymore. Because we are exposed to random decision-making. “And it is clear that you may fall out of love with a sport if you start to question, with all the work you have been doing, all the sweat and tears and blood.” Toto Wolff did not disclose whether Hamilton will be back for the 2022 F1 season in February as the Brit’s contract with Mercedes runs upto the end of 2022. “I would very much hope that Lewis continues racing because he’s the greatest driver of all time,” the 49-year-old said. “We will be working through the events over the next weeks and months and I think that as a racer, his heart will say ‘I need to continue’, because he is at the peak of his game. “But we have to overcome the pain that was caused upon him on Sunday, also because he is a man with clear values and it is difficult for him to understand how that happened.” “I just have to do the utmost that I can to help him overcome this, in order for him to return strong and with a love of the sport and trust in the decision-making of the sport next year, and I wish very much that will be the case.” Hamilton has been silent after the Yas Marina race and quietly jetted back to UK on Wednesday to receive a knighthood award from Prince Charles at Windsor Castle.