Lewis Hamilton penalty row: F1 champion blasts big decisions 'secrecy'

Lewis Hamilton has criticised the lack of transparency in F1 decision-making processes, after a controversial penalty handed to him at the recent Mexican Grand Prix.

Hamilton was given a 10-second time penalty for 'leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage' following a battle with Max Verstappen at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, a penalty that Sky Sports F1's Karun Chandhok described as 'harsh'.

It completely dropped Hamilton out of contention for a podium, having been sat in third and looking to be on his way to a first grand prix podium with his new Ferrari team.

Even more frustratingly for the seven-time world champion, however, was the fact that Verstappen was not penalised for a similar infringement during the same battle, or that Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were not given penalties for cutting the corner at turn one on lap one.

The reasoning was that lap one incidents are looked upon more leniently due to the chaotic nature of the beginning of races, while Verstappen lost out to Ollie Bearman when he left the track when fighting Hamilton, which may have been evidence that he had not gained an advantage.

But, Hamilton has criticised the fact that no official clarity was provided by the FIA race stewards to him, and he has urged them to think about the impact that decisions can have on drivers' careers.

Speaking to media ahead of the Brazilian GP weekend, he said: "There's no clarity, and I think this is part of a broader problem involving transparency and accountability, as well as the secrecy of how decisions are made behind the scenes.

"I don't know if they're aware of the weight of their decisions. They certainly influence careers and can even decide the outcome of a world championship, as you've seen in the past."

Hamilton's 2021 championship defeat

In the last bit of that quote, Hamilton is likely referencing 2021, when a controversial decision made by then race director Michael Masi at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix cost Hamilton a record-breaking eighth world title.

Masi allowed some lapped cars that were in between Hamilton and Max Verstappen to pass, going against the rules at the time, meaning that Verstappen was directly behind Hamilton with one lap of the season to go.

They had gone into the race level on points in what was a thrilling championship race, and so Verstappen's overtake on Hamilton on fresher tyres allowed him to claim a maiden championship title.

Masi was removed from his position as race director ahead of the 2022 season after the incident, but Hamilton has not been in a position to challenge for an eighth title ever since that moment.

Hamilton will be hoping that he will have other chances to claim his first grand prix podium with Ferrari, and that he may even challenge for an eighth world title one day.

Hamilton in trouble with the stewards again

It perhaps felt inevitable after Hamilton's complaint that he found himself back in front of the stewards after sprint qualifying at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Hamilton passed double waved yellow flags as he sped past his stranded team-mate Charles Leclerc on track, prompting a post session investigation from the FIA.

However, given the circumstances of him not being able to see the double waved yellow flags in time, the Alpine confirm F1 driver lineup as team revamp ahead of Brazilian GP">FIA let the seven-time champion off with a reprimand.

READ MORE: F1 world champions: Full list from Farina to four-time King Verstappen

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