Hamilton reprimanded by FIA, but not for his crash with Russell
- Sam Godber
In the aftermath of his crash with George Russell, Lewis Hamilton was under the magnifying glass of the FIA. A reprimand and fine followed, but not for causing the collision with his teammate.
Hamilton not penalised for crash with Russell
The stewards agreed that Hamilton was primarily responsible for the incident, but saw it as a typical 'first lap, first corner' incident. In that case, such actions are often condoned because of the chaos that can occur at the start.
What the Mercedes driver was caught off guard for, however, was crossing the track where it was not allowed. As there were cars on the track, this could have caused a dangerous situation. The stewards therefore reprimanded Hamilton and imposed a €50,000 fine, of which €25,000 was conditional.