Lewis Hamilton admits faking illness to shirk F1 duties for Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton talking to the press in Austria — Photo: © LAT Images

F1 Superstars

Hamilton admits faking illness to shirk F1 duties for Mercedes

The seven-time F1 world champion has made a rather honest admission

Matthew Hobkinson Lead Editor

F1 Editor & Journalist

Thursday 28 December 2023 12:57

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Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has admitted faking an illness in the past to get out of testing duties during his time at Mercedes.

Post-season and pre-season testing has never been a favourite pastime for drivers, with Sergio Perez even recently labelling it as a 'pain in the a**'.

Hamilton is clearly of a similar mindset, after he revealed that he's pulled the age-old trick of pretending to be ill in order to get out of work.

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The revelation came to light during an end of season review on the team's official YouTube channel, with Hamilton joined by team principal Toto Wolff and reserve driver Mick Schumacher as they addressed a packed room at their Brackley headquarters.

And neither is Lewis Hamilton, it turns out

Hamilton admits faking illness

The absence of George Russell was addressed by Wolff, who revealed that the man from King's Lynn was struggling with illness.

Yet it was Hamilton's follow-up that revealed the lengths the 38-year-old was willing to go to in order go get out of testing.

George Russell was absent from the team's end of season review with illness

"George is really ill, it's not a sickie that he's pulled," Wolff said.

“I was wondering,” Hamilton replied. “In the past I have done that to miss the test days, because I just generally don’t like test days.

“So yesterday when I heard that he was sick, I was like ‘Ah, he’s one-upped me, he’s gone to another level!'”

Pre-season testing takes place between February 21-23 next year, one week ahead of the curtain-raiser in Bahrain as excitement builds for lights out once again.

Hamilton will of course be present, as the Mercedes star hopes that the Silver Arrows can take the fight to Red Bull after what was a disappointing season for the team in 2023.

Lewis Hamilton Mercedes George Russell Toto Wolff Sergio Perez Mick Schumacher