Has Lewis Hamilton over stepped the line?

[Sparkymart]

I've just been reading that Lewis has had a dig at the FIA about putting entertainment before safety with the  incident with the safety car start on Sunday. But surely Lewis driving nearly half a lap on 3 wheels at Silverstone was a safety issue? And I don't think he'd have been happy getting black flagged on his last lap and losing out to Max

And as for that t-shirt he was wearing on the podium.. I just think he's gone a step to far 

[Captain Colonial]

I’d agree with Lewis on the fact it was unsafe to turn off the safety car’s lights so close to the start / finish line on that track to be sure.  Every F1 driver I’ve read when asked agreed with him on that one.  The official line that they’d done the same for the F3 race earlier without an issue doesn’t mean it’s right, it just means they may have gotten away with it once.
 

However, Lewis saying it was done for entertainment value is difficult to prove and bordering on libellous.  If it was, then it’s a gross error.
 

As far as Silverstone is concerned, he was still on four wheels, not three (granted, one deflated tyre, but still four wheels); he was leading the race by a considerable margin with no other cars anywhere near him; and it was the last lap of the race and not endangering other drivers and therefore highly unlikely to be subjected to a black flag.  He was in control of his car as evidenced by the fact he finished the lap.  Therefore I don’t think that was a safety issue at all.

 

The t-shirt was too far in my opinion, even if his motives were noble.

[Blatman]

2 hours ago, Captain Colonial said:

However, Lewis saying it was done for entertainment value is difficult to prove and bordering on libellous.

 

Quite a lot of the decisions of the FIA are seemingly for the benefit of "the show". I understand the rationale even if I don't agree with all of it. However isn't the safety car decision down to the Clerk of the Course? I would suspect there is an FIA delegate whispering in his ear but is there not a requirement for independence when safety is the critical factor?

There have been plenty of examples where safety car deployment has been questionable and can easily be linked to either a local favourite needing some help or bunching up the pack in the hope of improving "the show", IE safety car deployments where safety is a minor bit player in the decision

 

2 hours ago, Captain Colonial said:

The t-shirt was too far in my opinion, even if his motives were noble.

 

100%  

[Rhett Turner - Black Country AO]

With Lewis and Silverstone, the one thing I did think at the time was should he have come into the pits and crossed the finish line there. Returning to the pits when you've a puncture or damage is allowed unless there is so much damage or disintegraiton you become a danger, which Lewis was not. To drive like that for two laps even if only one is racing is questionable.

 

As for the tee shirt, whatever the message, right or wrong, to use the platform for personal statements is wrong.  I suspect if it's not against the rules now it should be in the not too distant future. Most other sports don't allow the display of non sanctioned "Personal" messages without punishment and F1 should be no different. 

[shrops-paul]

I think Lewis is a fantastic driver. That must be beyond doubt, despite his luck with having a good car but maybe that’s also part of the skill (looking at you Alonso). After that though I just don’t like him. Hes basically just not the kind of guy I’d like to go down the pub with. He’s far too keen to jump on any passing bandwagon and doesn’t seem to give things enough thought beforehand.

 

Personally I find the current spate of BLM protests etc. infuriating, as all minorities matter and I don’t like the narrow focus. F1 has always enjoyed a broad spectrum of nationalities, races and backgrounds. I don’t believe it’s an industry that discriminates and I don’t like the degree of bullying taking place around the pre race taking the knee stuff and those that abstain.

[Captain Colonial]

2 hours ago, Rhett - Joint Black Country AO said:

With Lewis and Silverstone, the one thing I did think at the time was should he have come into the pits and crossed the finish line there. Returning to the pits when you've a puncture or damage is allowed unless there is so much damage or disintegraiton you become a danger, which Lewis was not. To drive like that for two laps even if only one is racing is questionable.

A couple of things:

 

 

Lewis’s tyre failure on the final lap was at Woodcote - that’s only 1/4 - 1/3 the way round.  Luckily for him, he had a big lead and drove with real speed and courage to get the car back round and win.

 

If he’d have gone into the pits, he’d have had to slow significantly which probably would have cost him the win - Max was less than 6 seconds behind him at the end.  It was actually safer for Lewis to be by himself on the track for the end of the final lap than in the tight pits full of people.  (Plus as M-B had the 1st garage in the pits, I’m not entirely sure if he’d have crossed the start-finish line if he had pitted.)

 

Once he crossed the finish line after the 3/4 of a lap it was irrelevant anyway as everyone was slowed right down.

[DonPeffers]

An article I found interesting.....       "Willy T Ribbs: 'F1 drivers can change the world by backing Hamilton'"

 https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/articles/single-seaters/f1/willy-t-ribbs-f1-drivers-can-change-the-world-by-backing-hamilton 

 

AFAIAA the Breaona Taylor case while very shocking has elements that require clarification and I would have thought a trial could have achieved that yet I am unaware of any charges being brought.

Louisville officials have banned the use of no-knock warrants, which allow the police to forcibly enter people’s homes to search them without warning, and, in late June, fired one of the officers involved in the shooting.

The Attorney General is examining ballistics reports.

 

18 mins ago...."Breonna Taylor: Louisville reaches 'substantial' settlement with family – reports"  https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/sep/15/breonna-taylor-louisville-reaches-substantial-settlement-with-family-reports

 

"The city of Louisville, Kentucky, has reached a “substantial” settlement with the family of Breonna Taylor in a civil suit stemming from the fatal shooting by police of Taylor, 26, inside her apartment in March, according to reports.

City officials were expected to announce the settlement later on Tuesday in a joint press conference with lawyers for the Taylor family, according to a report by the local Courier Journal.

Separately, a grand jury could soon be asked to weigh charges in a potential criminal case against three police officers involved in the shooting. Local prosecutors have come in for heavy criticism for the six-month delay in weighing charges against the officers.

Taylor, a Black medical worker, was killed in a post-midnight police raid of the apartment she shared with boyfriend Kenneth Walker. Witnesses said police did not identify themselves before entering the apartment, where Walker fired on them".

 

 

 

 

[Dan_G]

21 hours ago, shrops-paul said:

I think Lewis is a fantastic driver. That must be beyond doubt, despite his luck with having a good car but maybe that’s also part of the skill (looking at you Alonso). After that though I just don’t like him. Hes basically just not the kind of guy I’d like to go down the pub with.

 

His talent is unquestionable however he's an entitled spoilt child.  Turns out being a child superstar does that to racing drivers and pop stars alike.  They grow into adulthood surrounded by yes men and become nothing more than overgrown children that get overly upset when things dont go the way they want. 

 

James Hunt on the other hand... I'd go to the pub with him.  👍🏻

 

 

 

[Alan France]

I would suggest most people who reach the top of the tree, especially in competitive activities, exhibit elements that others may find unusual.

 

How many times have we heard how difficult a driver is to deal with, it's just the obsessive desire to win. Like Bill Gates, it wasn't enough to win, the others had to lose.

 

I would grant Lewis some slack, he's pretty good at the main job.

[Sparkymart]

26 minutes ago, Alan France said:

I would grant Lewis some slack, he's pretty good at the main job.

I totally agree he's an excellent driver and I've always defended while others moan about him. But my opinion is now changing 

[Captain Colonial]

2 hours ago, Alan France said:

I would grant Lewis some slack, he's pretty good at the main job.

Exactly this.  How many people have we all worked with who were excellent at their job but who were so annoying as a human being that you’d happily punch them in the face in the car park once work finished?  He’s entitled to his views, the same as we are, as long as it doesn’t affect his driving.  As a matter of fact, it might well work in his favour by annoying the other drivers! 😄