F1, Lewis Hamilton attacks Red Bull and Max Verstappen

Lewis Hamilton speaks on the budget cap case

At the press conference ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton spoke on the budget cap issue.

The Mercedes driver first emphasized, “It is imperative that the FIA is strict on this issue. We must continue to be transparent for the fans and for the integrity of the sport. I don’t know enough about it, there is a lot of talk about it, but nobody knows for sure. There are different numbers and different things being said. I expected the results to come out now and I like to think that if they have been delayed it is because they are taking it very seriously and I trust that Mohammad (Ben Sulayem, chairman of the governing body) is taking it seriously and will do the right thing for the sport. I think it would be bad for F1 if no action is taken if there is an infraction. But I don’t know if there is an infraction, so I will wait, just like you.”

Then, he showed more than one regret about last season: “I remember last year, as a driver, I was always asking for an upgrade. At Silverstone (last year) we made the last upgrade, which brought us almost three tenths. I’m pretty sure it cost less than a million — but maybe over time it would have cost more in terms of construction. I remember after that I needed more upgrades, but I would see those guys’ (Red Bull) trucks and the upgrades they kept making to their car, and I thought, ‘Jesus, it’s going to be hard to beat them if they keep making upgrades.’ Money is the key to the development race.”

“I think since Silverstone they’ve had at least four more updates. If we had spent $300,000 on a new bottom or if we had fitted a different wing, we would have obviously changed the outcome of the championship because we would have been more competitive,” the British driver lamented.