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4 hours ago
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Lewis Hamilton believes Formula One drivers should have a “seat at the table” in discussion on directions the sport should take in future, to have an input alongside key stakeholders such as the teams and the FIA. Hamilton’s view was largely echoed across the paddock including by the current world champion, Lando Norris.
Hamilton was speaking before this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix where the rule changes implemented after driver dissatisfaction with this year’s new regulations are taking effect for the first time.
“All the drivers we do work together, we all meet but the fact is we don’t have a seat at the table,” Hamilton said. “We do engage with the FIA and F1; F1’s more often a little bit more responsive. But being that we’re not stakeholders, we don’t have a seat at the table currently, which I think needs to change.”
The seven-time champion went on to cite the example of when new types of tyres are tested before being brought into the sport.
“I say to them, when I was doing the Pirelli test: ‘You guys should come and speak to us and collaborate with us, we don’t want to be slagging off the Pirelli tyres, we know you can build a good product,’” he added.
“But their feedback will be coming from people who have never driven a car before. Speak to us, we’ll work hand in hand, we can work together to approach the FIA so we can get a better product. The same with F1. We’re here to work with you. We don’t want to be slating our sport. We want the sport to succeed and so we need to be working together.
“But it’s like a [broken] record, you keep doing it and it’s like small baby steps each time. But I have no doubt [we are aligned].”
Since the start of the season there has been widespread criticism of the new regulations from drivers, who have been vocal in their discontent at the role energy management now plays in the sport with an almost 50-50 split between power from the combustion engine and electrical energy.
The deployment and recharging of the latter has come to dominate how drivers approach a lap and has led to considerable unhappiness, not least from Max Verstappen who has said he is considering his future in the sport, such is his disenchantment with the impact of the rules.
“I hope for more and more [driver input],” said Verstappen. “I think if we would have had that five, maybe even before, like five, six years ago, we probably wouldn’t have been in the state that we are in now.”
The rule adjustments now employed focus on the parameters of the energy recovery management during qualifying and racing and there was guarded optimism in the paddock that they will prove to be effective, but there remains a strong feeling that greater driver input during the formation of new regulations would have potentially headed off the problems this season.
“It’s completely correct, it’s something that we want, it’s what they have in a lot of other sports,” Norris said of Hamilton’s position. “Having a seat at the table is something we’ve spoken about as the GPDA [Grand Prix Drivers’ Association]. We’re all very aligned with that.
“Sometimes I think we have to accept as drivers we’re very blindsided. Maybe the externals from a business side of things, teams, how teams work, how all of that’s organised. We have to accept that we’re maybe not always completely correct. But the majority of things that we think of us as drivers and what we want for the sport is a win-win. It’s better for us and it’s better for the fans.”
Before the drivers had a chance to put the new rules to the test in what will be an extended first practice session on Friday, there was further damning criticism of this year’s formula from Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
“I think it’s fundamentally just so flawed. I’m not an engineer, but maybe there’s a lot of things that can be done. I don’t have all the answers. It’s sad that we’re in this situation,” he said.
The Canadian was also unequivocal when asked why he thought F1 felt the rules were working out well. “F1 is a business and they want to protect their business, we’re drivers and we know how it feels like to drive a good car, so there’s two different perspectives on it,” he added.
“People are watching the sport no matter what, so F1 is happy. But for the drivers, the fans, the people that really know about racing, know what it was like before, the drivers that know what it’s like to drive really good, proper cars. There’s no hiding behind the fact that right now it’s not as good as it could be, it’s far from good as it could be.”
