F1 News: Lewis Hamilton On FIA Drama - "Don't Think I Was Singled Out"

"I put my hands up. In the heat of the moment, it was the wrong decision."

The FIA held talks with Lewis Hamilton in Austin after he admitted to his mistake of walking across the live racetrack in Qatar. However, the Mercedes driver accused the governing body of poor communication.

The British driver walked across the racetrack while the race was under the Safety Car after crashing out at the first corner in a collision with team-mate George Russell. A fine of €50,000 (£43,600) was levied on him for the walk but half of it was suspended.

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A week after the race, the FIA announced on Sunday that they were reassessing Hamilton's action considering his role model status that inspires many young drivers. The announcement prompted many to raise their eyebrows but after the last meeting with the FIA officials, the seven-time world champion assured that there would be no repeats of the incident in Qatar. He told Sky Sports F1: 

"I don't think I was singled out. Ultimately, I think it was just poor communication. I don't think what they have said is exactly what they meant.

"I think what they mean is that they are just going to look into how they can tackle it. Those sorts of things. We've been forced to make sure that doesn't happen.

"If you look at, I think there was a karting incident recently where a kid was hit. So we really need to make sure that we are continuously focusing on safety and I think that's really at the root of it. But I just think they probably need to speak to their PR agent to do a better job."

F1 News: FIA Under Fire After Revisiting Lewis Hamilton Qatar Penalty

Luckily for Hamilton, half of the €50,000 fine was payable while the rest was written off over the condition that there would be no further breach of a similar nature for the remaining 2023 season. However, he received an official reprimand from stewards, which was his first of the season. He continued:

"When I sat in the in the stewards office, I put my hands up. In the heat of the moment, it was the wrong decision,

"What's important is to send the right message particularly for the younger drivers throughout the ranks that that's the wrong thing to do. I apologised at the time and I think they are just looking how to make sure that doesn't happen moving forwards."