Lewis Hamilton might land enormous FIA penalty upon missing key event in the Formula 1 race calendar

Lewis Hamilton has had several disagreements with the governing bodies of the sport over the course of his illustrious career. The newest row between the FIA and Hamilton was set in motion following last weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix. With the penultimate round of the 2023 calendar over, the Formula 1 drivers are heading to Abu Dhabi for the final Grand Prix weekend of the season. In the post-season, FIA holds the prestigious Prize Gala.

The Prize Gala has been the venue of awarding the championship winners and their fellow drivers. This event is often serves as a lookback upon the latest Championship season. All drivers are mostly present at the ceremony, However, Lewis Hamilton has not been spotted at the Gala since 2021. The controversial end of the 2021 season, which saw Max Verstappen crowned as the World Champion because of a safety car incident, has been alluded by many fans as the reason behind Hamilton’s absence from the event. The FIA recently revealed, [as reported by Express.co.uk] their plans of levying a penalty upon the Mercedes driver in case of his absence from the 2023 Prize Gala.

Hamilton’s absence from the 2022 ceremony did not prove to be a problem from the FIA as he finished P6 in the driver’s standings in 2022 and hence did not require to be called onto the stage alone to accept an award. However, with a much improved season, Hamilton is slated to finish P3 in the driver’s championship in 2023. This means that Hamilton will be awarded the P3 medal at the ceremony. It will be interesting to see whether the Briton continues his streak of absence at the Gala. The ceremony is slated to be held on 9th December 2023.

Lewis Hamilton reveals disagreements with Mercedes’ Trackside Director Andrew Shovlin

Mercedes’ ‘Trackside Director,’ Andrew Shovlin, a pivotal figure in the team, is now under the spotlight as Hamilton sheds light on disagreements that arose during the lackluster performance of the W14 in the early stages of the 2023 season. Despite their generally strong working relationship, Hamilton revealed that he and Shovlin frequently clash over various aspects of the car’s development in their shared pursuit of increased on-track performance.

That’s Shov. We’ve known each other for 11 years, we’ve had an amazing relationship, but we argue a lot. Me and him are the only ones that argue here [at Mercedes].

Acknowledging Shovlin’s often accurate assessments, Hamilton emphasized. The strength of their relationship with a light-hearted comment, “So he took off a race, I think he was at home for the last race, And I was like ‘Where’s Shov? I don’t have anyone to argue with!”

Lewis Hamilton, who has been at the Mercedes garage since 2013, has long been synonymous with the team’s success, earning them six Driver’s Championship titles between 2014 and 2020. The partnership is often dubbed a ‘dream team’ and has seemingly been flawless in their glory years. However, recent comments from Hamilton hint towards different narrative behind the garage door in recent years.