Hamilton cleared of blame after his car knocked over mechanic

Lewis Hamilton has been cleared of any wrongdoing after a Ferrari mechanic was struck by his car during a chaotic pit stop at the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday. The incident occurred as mechanics attempted to change the car's tires and adjust the front wing simultaneously.

As the jack lowered and the green light signaled Hamilton to proceed, a mechanic stepped forward for the wing adjustment and was knocked over by the front wheel. Formula One stewards determined that Ferrari was responsible, citing an "inappropriately late instruction for the wing adjustment, a lack of clear communication and the mechanic’s failure to notice the green light." The team was subsequently fined 30,000 euros, with 10,000 suspended.

Hamilton, who finished fourth in the race and is now second in the championship behind winner Kimi Antonelli, expressed relief that the mechanic was not seriously injured. He stated that he was focused on the lights and proceeded when the car dropped, stopping immediately upon seeing the mechanic. He recalled a similar incident involving Kimi Raikkonen in 2018, where a mechanic suffered a double leg fracture during a pit stop.

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I am just grateful my mechanic didn’t get hurt. I am looking at the lights, and I am supposed to go when the car is dropping. And I went, and then I saw him to my right and stopped as soon as I could. All I could think about at the time is when Kimi (Raikkonen) did a leg, and that is what I thought (had happened) initially, but he got up and moved.