Lewis Hamilton defies FIA ruling and risks ban on first day of new F1 season
Lewis Hamilton has once again defied the FIA’s ban on jewellery as he made his return for the 2023 F1 season.
The seven-time world champion was in a standoff with the sport’s governing body for most of last year as he repeatedly refused to adhere to the new rule they introduced which forbid drivers from wearing items of jewellery while driving.
Hamilton did ultimately remove his nose stud for the British Grand Prix in July – but he turned up to the first day of pre-season testing in Bahrain today (February 23) wearing not one, but two, having got his other nostril pierced over the winter break.
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Fans spotted the pair of studs as he walked around the paddock and images from Mercedes’ social media accounts appeared to show both still in his nose after he’d climbed into his cockpit.
Commenting on the saga last year, Hamilton said: “When they told me about the jewellery, they were saying safety is everything.
“I said, ‘Well, what’s happened for the last 16 years? I’ve had jewellery on for 16 years. So was safety not an issue back then?’
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(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“I feel like it’s almost like a step backwards, if you think about the steps we are taking as a sport, and the more important causes that we need to be focused on.
“We had that whole commotion at the beginning of the year. At the time it was soldered in so it didn’t come loose. They gave me at the time, for many races, an exemption until I could find a solution.
(Image: Twitter/@MercedesAMGF1)
“Then I went and got it taken out. It got infected because of that and I had a blood blister. Then I went back and had to have the blood blister fixed because there was pus and blood and stuff and then I put this in and the last two weeks it’s started to heal.”
On the track in Bahrain, Max Verstappen topped the timing charts ahead of Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin and the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz. Hamilton was sixth quickest with Mercedes looking to bounce back following a disappointing 2022.
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