McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton apologises for joke to race stewards after Monaco GP – Formula 1 news
Recent reports have revealed that the 2008 Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton apologised to the race stewards after cracking a joke in reference to the penalisation he was given during the Monaco Grand Prix.
Hamilton collided with Pastor Maldonado during the race as a result of which he was given a 20-second drive through penalty since it was a totally unnecessary move from the McLaren driver’s side.
When he was given the penalty, he felt that he was being “victimised” and therefore he commented on the stewards that, “Maybe it was because I’m black, that’s what Ali G says.”
According to the 2008 Formula 1 champion, it was a reference joke as this dialog was performed by Sacha Baron Cohen who plays a character comedy character Ali G. However, Hamilton confirmed that he went to the stewards after the race just to ensure that
they did not take it seriously and to avoid any sort of misunderstanding.
“They said at the end that they would make sure other people in the FIA understand. They said that for anybody who has heard it and misunderstood, that they'll clarify it with them and it won't go any further than the meeting room. But what I said was a
bit of a joke, which wasn't funny at the time,” said Hamilton.
He added that the stewards accepted his explanation as they understood what Hamilton was trying to say. The stewards stated that they were aware of where the young British comes from so it is not going to be a big issue.
“I made them aware that when emotions are high, and it's very intense at the end of those kinds of races, you don't always say the right thing, and the joke didn't come at the most appropriate time. So I went there, made that clear to them, we've made our
peace,” said the McLaren driver.
Hamilton finished the Monaco Grand Prix in sixth place behind Kamui Kobayashi of Sauber-Ferrari. The next race of the season will take place in Canada in two weeks’ time.
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