Hamilton taking a break from "very toxic" social media

Lewis Hamilton's brother Nicolas has revealed the Mercedes driver is taking a break from social media after missing out on an eighth F1 world championship.

The British driver was overtaken by Max Verstappen on the final lap of the season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in controversial circumstances, with Mercedes protesting the result in the immediate aftermath.

After the team decided not to appeal the decision to throw out the protests, Mercedes finally broke its own silence on its social media channels whilst team principal Toto Wolff gave an interview, yet nothing has been heard from Hamilton since.

The 36-year-old has the largest social media following of any driver in the sport, with his 26.4 million followers usually treated to daily insights from the seven-time world champion.

Yet the last activity on Hamilton's Instagram was post-qualifying at Yas Marina, while his 'following' count had dropped to zero on the platform.

Speaking recently via his Twitch channel, brother Nicolas commented: "Lewis is fine.

"I think he is having a bit of a social media break, which I don't blame him for.

"Social media can be a very toxic place but yeah, he is cool though, he is fine. He is currently watching the kids ski at the moment so he is alright."

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