When Lewis Hamilton apologised for spraying champagne on Russian President Vladimir Putin
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Lewis Hamilton greeting Vladimir Putin following the 2018 Russian GP
Lewis Hamilton is one of the greatest racing drivers of all time, but he is also no stranger to controversy. Well, that depends on your perspective if it is controversial. He also has a celebrity image outside Formula 1, and is one of the sport’s best ambassadors and has helped bring more attention to the paddock.
There has also been no shortage of amusing moments. The podium celebration from the 2015 Russian Grand Prix is perhaps chief among them. Hamilton had won the race and was congratulated and handed the trophy by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. When Russia and the West meet, the atmosphere is always rather tense. But that did not affect the then-two-time world champion.
Putin and Hamilton also shared a hug while the trophy was handed over. As Putin started to walk away, the Briton was not very keen on waiting. He took the champagne bottle and started spraying the crowd it. Unfortunately for him, when he rerouted the bottle, a little bit of (perhaps inadvertently) spray got onto the Russian president’s back. In 2018, when the two met again, neither had forgotten about it.
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Lewis Hamilton to Vladimir Putin: “I won’t spray you with champagne this time!”
In the Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton had won the race with a 2-and-a-half-second gap to his teammate, Valtteri Bottas, who had started on pole. Perhaps the most notable tidbit from the race was Mercedes asking Bottas to let Hamilton pass. With the race victory, Hamilton had extended his lead on top of the table to 50 points to second-placed Sebastian Vettel.
In the cool-down room after the race, Lewis Hamilton and Vladimir Putin greeted each other. Speaking through an interpreter, Putin said: “I am accustomed to awarding you something each year. Year, after year…” but Hamilton was rather eager to announce his innocence from the champagne spraying incident in 2015.
Lewis Hamilton had maintained that he did not spray Putin in the podium celebration in 2015, and to maintain his innocence, he interrupted Putin, saying: “This year I won’t spray you with Champagne. It wasn’t me last time, It was someone else!” to which Putin responded, once again through an interpreter: “You’re doing well. With the champagne, and with the race, which is more important.”
Once again in the podium celebration, as it had been in 2015, Vladimir Putin awarded the 1st place trophy to Lewis Hamilton. This time, however, unlike in 2015, Hamilton waited until Putin had left the stage to start celebrating and spraying the champagne.
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