“An Absolute Frickin Joke”: Annoyed Lewis Hamilton Once Lashed Out on the Stewards for Their Bizarre Behavior

Lewis Hamilton has a history of speaking his mind. The Hamilton we see today is far more composed than he used to be and much more straightforward than he was when he was younger. In 2011, a circumstance caused the then McLaren driver to become so enraged that he used a nasty method of expression to lash out at the stewards.

After receiving three penalties in two days at the Monaco Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton unleashed an unprecedented tirade against the race officials. Later, the McLaren driver expressed regret to the officials for what he called “a little joke, which wasn’t humorous at the moment.” He admitted that his feelings had been high following yet another stressful afternoon during which he had to get two drive-through penalties before placing sixth.

“It’s an absolute frickin’ joke,” Hamilton said. “I’ve been to see the stewards five times out of six this season.” When he was found to have crossed a chicane on Saturday, he was given a penalty and dropped two spots to ninth on the starting grid. He had won the first two qualifying rounds, but in Q3, McLaren’s dubious tactics cost him the race. When he attempted to pass Felipe Massa on the inside at Loews Hairpin on Sunday, he collided with the Ferrari driver.

He dropped from seventh to ninth, losing two positions. On the second time, he collided with Williams driver Pastor Maldonado, causing the rookie to strike a wall. This time, Hamilton received a retroactive penalty that added 20 seconds to his time, but it did not affect where he finished. In the post-interview, the Englishman told BBC Sport in a post-race interview “Massa held me up in qualifying and I got the penalty. Then he turned into me [during the race] and I got the penalty. I was quite a lot quicker than Massa. These drivers are ridiculous. It’s stupid.”

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Since his early days competing in the top division of Motorsports, Lewis Hamilton has been going to the Stewards. The frequent visits have apparently caused the Englishman to grow impatient, and like on several occasions, the seven-time champion has voiced his thoughts on the Stewards.

Lewis Hamilton criticizes the Stewards for alleged favoritism

Lewis Hamilton and the Stewards appear to have a relationship, but it is not good. On several occasions, the British driver has been seen airing his opinions about how the Stewards operate, and back in February of this year, he accused them of possibly being biased against specific drivers and teams. The Mercedes driver, who was denied his eighth title under contentious circumstances, claims that institutional favoritism in the sport was created to address.

He said, “We need to make sure we get non-biased stewards. Racing drivers, some are very, very good friends with certain individuals. Some travel with certain individuals and tend to take more of a keen liking to some of them. I just think [we need] people who have no bias and are super central when it comes to making decisions.”

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Additional disputes between Hamilton and the Stewards saga was also documented in 2022. And as of now, the Englishman hasn’t voiced any opinions on the FIA’s new regulation that prohibits drivers from giving their views without permission from the governing body. Given that, do you anticipate Hamilton will express his thoughts any time soon?