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LEWIS HAMILTON has slammed “dangerous” new rules coming into F1 that he believes threatens to put drivers’ lives at risk.The seven-time world champion lashed out at proposals to ban tyre blankets, saying it is a “pointless exercise”.
Lewis Hamilton has blasted ‘dangerous’ new rules being introduced into F1Credit: Reuters
The rules are being considered as part of a shake up to reduce costs, as the energy-consuming blankets pre-heat tyres to provide better grip.
But Hamilton, one of only a few drivers who have trialled the new Pirelli tyres which had not been warmed first, says it could cause a crash as drivers take to the track on cold tyres.
He said: “I think it’s dangerous. I’ve tested the no blankets and there’s going to be an incident at some stage.
“So on a safety factor I think it’s the wrong decision. You have to drive multiple laps to get the tyres to work.
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“The whole argument is that taking away the blankets is for going more sustainable and more green. In actual fact we just use more fuel to get temperature into the tyres.
“But more concerning is just when you go out, the car is skating around, it’s very twitchy, and if there’s someone else who’s on tyres that are working you could easily collide with them. It’s a pointless exercise.”
Pirelli, the FIA and F1 are already phasing out tyre warming equipment on sustainability grounds.
Last year, the temperature at which they operate was reduced from 100C front and 80C rear to 70C all round.
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There had been plans to drop that temperature further to 50C this season, but that was stopped after the drivers voiced their concerns during a trial run in Austin last year.
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc also agrees that the blanket ban comes too soon.
He added: “For now I don’t think we are exactly ready. I think there’s still a little bit of work, especially on the warm-up part of it in the first few laps, it’s still quite tricky.”
Meanwhile, Hamilton has mixed feelings about this year’s Mercedes car after F1 testing in Bahrain came to a conclusion today.
He added: “It’s difficult to sum it up. We’ve had a couple of difficult days — Friday particularly was difficult.
“The first day didn’t feel too bad, [but] yesterday was a little bit more of a struggle.
“I think George has had a much better morning on Saturday, so hopefully we’ve got the set-up in a bit of a better place.
“But right now, for example, the bouncing that we had has pretty much gone, so that’s a huge step for us.
“It’s nice to drive without the bouncing for once, but there are still some underlying things that we’re working through.”
The F1 season kicks off next Sunday in Bahrain and Hamilton says it is still too “difficult to know” where Mercedes sit in the pecking order.
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He said: “Some of the balance limitations that we had last year are present — we’re working through them.
“[But] I’m really proud of everyone in the team for continuing to remain positive after a tough year last year, [doing] amazing through the winter for us to drive and have the mileage that we’ve had.” More

GEORGE RUSSELL was forced to abandon his Mercedes Formula One car during pre-season testing after suffering a hydraulics failure. The Mercedes W14 was brought to a halt with Russell behind the wheel during the second session of the day on Friday, causing a red flag.
George Russell suffered a hydraulics failureCredit: Getty
The Mercedes car had to be abandoned on track and Friday’s second session was red flaggedCredit: Getty
Russell and team boss Toto Wolff have been talking up the performance of their car ahead of the new season. 
However, Friday’s failure will come as a blow to Merc, Russell and team-mate Lewis Hamilton, who are hoping to be competitive this season.
The hydraulics failure left Russell unable to change gear or use power steering.
The Brit could not shift up or down from fourth gear and had to abandon the car on track.
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Former F1 racer Anthony Davidson said on Sky Sports’ coverage: “It would make sense that he’s stuck in fourth gear because the hydraulics controls the gear shift mechanism along with the power steering.
“He had no clutch and that’s also controlled by hydraulics.
“He’s got the green light on top of the car as well so it’s not a hybrid issue.”
The team later said on Twitter: “We’ve confirmed it was a hydraulic failure that caused George’s car to stop on track.
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“That’s likely to be the end of our running for today. Back on track tomorrow.”
The fault comes after Russell expressed confidence that he can match double champ Max Verstappen, who’s driving for Red Bull.
The 25-year-old said: “I definitely head into the season believing I can [win the championship].
“At every point of my career I have gone in believing, but you need to take a rational view once you get to the track.
“We definitely believe that eventually we will have a car capable of getting into that fight.
“But Red Bull are looking very strong, very stable, and obviously Max is performing really well so realistically it will be a stretch for us next week.
“But there is no reason why we cannot get there eventually at some point this year.
“We have always seen in the past the strength of Mercedes’ development rate, so the belief is there.”
The F1 season kicks off next weekend in Bahrain.

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MERCEDES boss Toto Wolff is confident his team have ironed out their bouncing problems from last season.Wolff watched as the W14 took to the track in Bahrain for pre-season testing today when there was no repeat of the porpoising that had plagued their previous model and left drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell in considerable discomfort.
Lewis Hamilton has received a big boost ahead of the new seasonCredit: Rex
The new Mercedes no repeat of the porpoising in Bahrain todayCredit: Getty
Hamilton went winless for the first time in his F1 career last season while Russell won just once late in the year in Sao Paulo.
Wolff had been hesitant to speak about this year’s model until it hit the track but says he was pleased with what he saw.
He said: “It seems to be balanced in the right way. There’s no bouncing, which is good news.
“We’re gathering a lot of data because that was important to correlate obviously after last year, and trying different things, so a productive first morning.
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“We knew that we were in trouble [last year], the car was just bouncing around and we really weren’t able to drive it correctly. So that is very different.
“I think we have a solid base now to work from and try to optimise the car, which we haven’t done yet.
“It’s really just finding out are there any areas that could be a real performance hindrance like last year with the bouncing. We’ve just got to work through the programme.”
Meanwhile, Wolff and his rival at Red Bull, Christian Horner, were unusually aligned when it came to controversial FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem stepping back from his role.
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After a series of blunders, Ben Sulayem has removed himself from the day-to-day running of F1’s governing body and delegated the duties to Nikolas Tombazis.
The experienced F1 designer chaired the recent F1 Commission meeting where new rules were finalised, which proved a positive decision for the team bosses.
Wolff added: “We have a structure now that is very clear. Nikolas chaired the last commission. We have a lot on the agenda, short and long term.
“What we need to try to achieve is to work together pragmatically. Lots of objectives are aligned  in having the best, robust regulations and policing to put on a great show.”
Red Bull boss Horner added: “For once, I agree with everything Toto said!
“It is an evolution. There are big topics that need to be dealt with, particularly 2026.
“We need to make sure the engine world, the chassis world, and the product of what we want F1 to be all aligned.
“There is enough time to do that. It needs to be a priority over the coming months.” More

MERCEDES have released footage of Lewis Hamilton’s first drive at Silverstone in their new W14 car.The Brit F1 legend is hoping this is the car to deliver him a record eighth world title.
Mercedes have released footage of Lewis Hamilton behind the wheel of the new W14Credit: Instagram / @mercedesamgf1
Fans are cautiously optimistic about the car’s chancesCredit: Instagram / @mercedesamgf1
Fans claimed that they didn’t think the car appeared to be porpoisingCredit: Instagram / @mercedesamgf1
Hamilton is hoping the car will help deliver him a record eighth F1 world titleCredit: Rex
The chassis of Mercedes’ car for 2023, which was launched last week, is mainly unpainted carbon fibre in a bid to save grams of excess weight.
And footage of Hamilton behind the wheel of the car was posted to Mercedes’ Instagram account on Wednesday.
Fans eagerly watched to see if the porpoising – bouncing in layman’s terms – issues that plagued the team last season were still present.
Merc supporters will get a better idea of whether they have fixed the problem when testing gets underway in Bahrain on Thursday.
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But, from the short on-board snippet that was revealed on Wednesday, fans believed there was reason to be excited.
One wrote in reply to the video: “Bye bye porpoising.”
Another delighted fan exclaimed: “NO BOUNCING PEOPLE! NO BOUNCING!!!”
A third added: “Thank god porpoising is now a term I can wipe from my memory
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And a fourth said tentatively: “I don’t want to be too optimistic but that looks and sound like a championship winning car.”
Meanwhile, other more cautious fans refused to get carried away until seeing the car in testing.
Hamilton ended the 2022 season without a win – the first time in his career that he went an entire campaign without finishing P1.
This season marks his 17th in F1, and he is currently level with Michael Schumacher on seven world titles.
An eighth crown this year would make him the stand alone record holder. More

THE Formula One season gets the green light tomorrow as testing starts in Bahrain.Teams are limited to just three days of running around the 5.412 kilometre Bahrain International Circuit, which is home to the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Sergio Perez (right) will be hoping to challenge his teammate and world champion Max Verstappen this seasonCredit: Getty
Lewis Hamilton is targeting a record-breaking eighth world championshipCredit: PA
Here SunSPORT takes a look at the main talking points as we get to see this year’s challengers hit the track.
Why does F1 have testing?
F1 teams have been spending months and many millions developing and building this year’s cars.
However, they are not run on track at full speed until the designated three days of winter testing.
Teams do have an allocation of shakedown and a filming days but these are limited to 100 kilometres and the tyres are usually demonstration models.
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Therefore, it is only when they reach the official test can they run their cars at full capacity.
It will allow them to test for reliability and performance and gives teams access to vital data, such as fluid temperatures in the engine or even airflow over the bodywork.
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F1 cars are covered in around 300 sensors and monitored to see just how well they are performing or to spot any potential problems that need resolving.
The data can then be used to compare with what the teams had been expecting over their winter development.
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They can see how close the correlation is between their projected figures from their wind tunnels to a real-life scenario. 
Why is it in Bahrain?
Traditionally, F1 teams would test in Barcelona, however with the F1 calendar now taking in more races in warmer climates, the testing in Spain during February was not representative to conditions for the rest of the season. 
The weather in Barcelona was often cold, there was even snow a few years ago, so Bahrain offers more stable, warm conditions so the teams are able to get in more running and tweak their cars’ performance. 
The Bahrain circuit is also the host to the season-opening race, so logistically it makes sense as teams will bring their equipment for testing and then have it in place for the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 5 a week on Sunday. 
Staff are likely to stay out too, saving on travel costs. 
The other aspect is that this year’s F1 test has a sponsor, Saudi oil firm Aramco are the title-partner.
Why are most of the cars black?
Mercedes have reverted to the black livery they had in 2020 and 2021Credit: PA
It is all because of weight-saving. 
Last year’s new rules, plus the hybrid engines have made F1 cars bigger and heavier. 
There is a minimum weight requirement of 798 kilograms however, the majority of teams run way over that figure. 
This season it is about honing last year’s designs and shaving weight wherever possible because a lighter car increases performance and efficiency.
It is estimated that teams can save around six kilograms in paint by keeping a car unpainted and, given that carbon fibre, which is used for the majority of the car parts is black in colour, teams have simply opted not to paint them.
Who are the new drivers?
Much is expected of Alpha Tauri’s Nyck De Vries after his outstanding super-sub performance at Monza last yearCredit: Getty
There are some new faces – and the return of an old one.Oscar Piastri will make his F1 debut after joining McLaren after a long legal tussle with his former team, Alpine.
The Australian had a successful junior career and is highly-rated. He’s also managed by former F1 driver, Mark Webber. 
He replaces Daniel Ricciardo, who is now a reserve driver at Red Bull.
Logan Sargeant has joined Williams as a replacement for Nicholas Latifi. The American is making his debut too.
Nico Hulkenberg is returning to F1 and driving for the Haas team. He replaces Mick Schumacher, who is now a reserve driver at Mercedes.
Nyck de Vries, who filled in at Williams when Alex Albon was ill last year at Monza, has been given a shot with Alpha Tauri.
Will we find out who is the quickest?
Not necessarily, no.
The lap times are rarely an indication as to who will be quickest when the season starts.
What testing is good for is showing who is reliable, which in fairness should be all of the 10 teams given this year’s rules are stable.
Therefore, despite however many hundreds of laps the drivers put in this week, we will not know who is quickest until Saturday March 4 and qualifying for the Bahrain GP.
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This week, expect to see the glory runs for midfield teams looking to impress potential sponsors.
Similarly, the big teams could be sandbagging in the sense of not revealing their true car’s potential until it matters. More