Motorsport

LEWIS HAMILTON has declared that the integrity of Formula One will be RUINED if the FIA fail to punish teams who breached financial budget caps. Reports have been circulating since last week suggesting Red Bull and Aston Martin went over the allowed cost caps for the development of their cars last season.
Lewis Hamilton believes the integrity of F1 will be ruined if teams go unpunished for breaking rulesCredit: Splash
The financial audit for the team’s 2021 accounts were expected to be made public on Wednesday, but the FIA has since delayed this until October 10 – after the Japanese Grand Prix.
And if found guilty then Hamilton believes any transgression must be punished if the sport’s integrity is to remain intact.
Hamilton said: “I think it’s imperative, honestly, just for transparency. I think we need to continue to have transparency for the fans, for the integrity of the sport.
“Obviously there’s lots of conversations that are going on in the background. No one truly knows.
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“There’s different numbers and different things being said here and there, so I was expecting those results – like you – to come out yesterday.
“I would like to think that if it’s been delayed it’s because it’s been taken very seriously and I trust that Mohammed (bin Sulayem) is taking it seriously and will do what is right for the sport, I hope.
“I think it would be bad for the sport if action wasn’t taken if there was a breach.”
The budget cap – a new introduction to the sport aimed at making F1 more financially sustainable and levelling the playing field – allowed teams to spend up to £114million in developing their cars.
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Of course, Hamilton likely has an implied bias given the controversial circumstances he lost the 2021 title to Reb Bull’s Max Verstappen under.
If Red Bull’s alleged breach is found to be five per cent or more of the cap, this will constitute a “material (major) overspend breach” which could see them be punished in a number of ways.
These include sanctions as little as financial penalties or limits on aerodynamic testing, all the way up to the deduction of points from teams and drivers and suspension or exclusion from the championship.
Hamilton, who was spotted wearing a T-shirt with his own name paired with a floral coat, added: “It’ll put in question our values, the integrity of the sport.
“I remember last year as a driver, you were always asking for updates, updates, updates on things, whether it’s fuel, whatever it is. 
“And I remember in Silverstone when we got our last update and I remember that was almost three tenths, and I’m pretty certain it cost less than a million.
“But I remember after that needing more updates – but then seeing trucks of updates continuing to arrive on the other car, thinking ‘jeez, it’s going to be hard to beat them in the championship if they keep bringing updates.”
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F1 has gone through scandals before, such as 2007’s Spygate and 2008’s Crashgate.
And recently as 2020 controversy loomed as the FIA refused to publish details of a “settlement” they reached with Ferrari over the operation of the team’s power unit.
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LEWIS HAMILTON wore another stylish outfit just days after landing himself in hot water over breaking Formula One’s attire rules. Ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, Hamilton – ever the fashion guru of F1 – donned a T-shirt with his own name on it.
Lewis Hamilton wore a striking T-shirt and coatCredit: Getty
His T-shirt saw his name etched on in black font with a colourful monster paired alongside itCredit: Getty
Meanwhile, his coat saw a stunning floral pattern run down the armsCredit: Getty
The white T-shirt he sported had a stylish black font for his name and paired it with a colourful cartoon monster and more dashes of colour to contrast the otherwise plain black and white.
He paired this with a khaki coat which had a bouquet of flowers down each arm.
The 37-year-old has a well-earned reputation for wearing extravagant clothing and fashion accessories.
But just days ago he almost landed himself a fine by breaching the International Sporting Code of the FIA.
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Prior to the Singapore Grand Prix, the seven-time world champion had been called to the stewards relating to a breach of Appendix L, Chapter III, which prohibits the wearing of certain jewellery.
Hamilton was hauled in relating to the wearing of a nose piercing.
But he was able to avoid a personal fine due to having a doctor’s note, while his team Mercedes were slapped with a £22,400 fine for failing to alert the FIA about the piercing.
Despite the drama, Hamilton went on to produce his best qualifying result of the season before his weekend crumbled on race day – finishing with a disappointing P9.
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The ex-McLaren driver is on course for his worst-ever season in F1, with him sitting in a lowest-ever P6 in the drivers standings and yet to win a race this season.
However, he insists he is “happier than ever” in the sport amid rumours he could sign a bumper new five-year contract.
While Hamilton was spotted with his trendy shirt and coat around the paddock, other F1 stars have been seen enjoying the sights of Japan.
Namely AlphaTauri duo Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda, who were pictured in a hilarious must-watch karaoke session in Tokyo.
On track, talk of title business could be wrapped up this weekend with Max Verstappen having a golden chance of claiming a second successive title.
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Although the ramifications of last season’s controversial title are still being felt, and there may yet be another word had on that with the FIA preparing to finalise their financial audit of the teams.
Their findings are now set to be made public on October 10, with speculation mounting that Red Bull and Aston Martin have breached the budget cap.
Retiring Sebastian Vettel was in a happy mood around Suzuka, where he has won four timesCredit: Getty More

LEWIS HAMILTON has insisted he is happy at Mercedes despite being on track to produce his WORST-ever season in Formula One. The seven-time World Champion is yet to win a race this year, with Mercedes struggling to produce a car near the pace of Red Bull or Ferrari.
Lewis Hamilton has insisted he is happy in F1 despite his struggles this seasonCredit: Getty
Hamilton laboured to a P9 finish in SingaporeCredit: Getty
And Hamilton, 37, has also struggled himself and currently sits 6th in the driver standings – 32 points behind Carlos Sainz and 33 behind team-mate George Russell.
But Hamilton has reaffirmed his happiness in F1 amid rumours of him signing a new five-year contract.
Hamilton told Sky Sports: “I definitely feel I’m happier than I’ve ever been, which is really strange because I’m not winning in racing, and that’s really been my go-to thing.
“Having success there would bring me so much happiness, but I’m finding more happiness in my personal life now, just being more comfortable in who I am, and my surroundings and my intentions.”
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Despite being in cars which were arguably less competitive than this year’s W13, Hamilton has always managed to wrestle a race win out of every season he has competed in F1.
Furthermore, he has never finished below fifth place in the driver standings.

Hamilton went on a run of winning five podiums in a row – with back-to-back runner-up medals – prior to the mid-season break but has failed to replicate that form in the four races since.
He failed to finish the Belgium Grand Prix after taking damage from Fernando Alonso, and then came 4th and 5th in the next two races before a P9 result in a turbulent Singapore Grand Prix.
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Next up for the drivers is Suzuka, Japan, a circuit which has not been raced at in F1 since before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The race this weekend could Max Verstappen finally wrap up the title after failing to do so in Singapore.
Following his trip around Africa during the break, Hamilton revealed he feels more at peace with himself.
He added: “We live in such a bubble, there’s so much happening around the world and so many people are struggling with so much.
“It’s sad to see if you really sit and watch the news because it feels like it’s worse than ever.
“That experience of going to Africa, seeing people with so little – I say so little but they also have everything, they’re so happy – but just seeing a different way of living.
“We accumulate too much stuff, we eat too much food, the things that we take for granted, people don’t have that luxury and I think it’s really great to have that experience to put things into perspective.
“There, it was just when I was most at peace.”
There had been fears Hamilton would quit the sport after the controversial way he lost the title to Max Verstappen last year.
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And despite being more than half a season beyond those events, they have returned to the spotlight once again with reports indicating Red Bull – along with Aston Martin – may have exceeded F1’s new budget cap.
Depending on how bad the transgression is, it may even lead to Hamilton being awarded the 2021 title.
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RED BULL will argue they overspent their Formula One budget on SANDWICHES. But Mercedes chief Toto Wolff is preparing to miss the Japanese Grand Prix to argue against his rival team.
Christian Horner and Toto Wolff’s latest public row regards Red Bull’s spendingCredit: Getty
Wolff and rival Christian Horner are at loggerheads over the rule that limited teams’ spending last season to £114million amid allegations that Red Bull broke the cost-cap budget.
SunSport understands the final figure could now tip over the threshold following an assessment by the FIA to a sum that amounts to under £2m.
It is expected Red Bull will argue that the extra money spent was not directly related to the production of their car and was for other items such as canteen food at the factory, sick pay or wages for staff placed on gardening leave.
Merc are likely to counter that should have been included from the start.
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After all, every pound spent on sandwiches could have been cut from the cost of development on a rear wing.
Wolff is now considering skipping this weekend’s race at Suzuka so he can lobby his point.
The £2m overspending would qualify as a ‘minor’ breach of the rules and result in the FIA coming up with a suitable punishment, which Red Bull will either accept or appeal.
Should they accept, they’d be awarded their compliance certificate with the stipulation they accepted a breach agreement with the FIA.
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However, it is now looking unlikely that it will change the outcome of last year’s championship and that Red Bull’s Max Verstappen keeps his crown.
Horner was left in a rage that Wolff had publicly commented on Red Bull’s financial submission, calling foul play on how the Austrian was privy to the confidential document filed to the FIA.
Despite accusations of the opposite, Horner has maintained his F1 team filed their audited report with their costs actually LOWER than the cap.
On Sunday night after Sergio Perez’s win in Singapore, the Brit repeated his claim and said: “I’m absolutely confident in our submission.
“It’s been through a process. It went in in March, in terms of being signed off fully by our auditors, and we believe that we are comfortably within the cap.”
Red Bull are expected to argue they spent extra on sandwiches and not car researchCredit: AFP More

LEWIS HAMILTON could be sensationally handed LAST year’s world title after rival Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team were engulfed in a cheat storm.Red Bull, who were hoping to celebrate Verstappen’s second title win at the Singapore Grand Prix – where he finished seventh – have been accused of breaking F1’s cost-cap rules.
Lewis Hamilton could be given last year’s world title after all to make up for his Abu Dhabi heartbreakCredit: AP
Verstappen and his Red Bull team are caught up in a cheat stormCredit: AFP
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff claimed it would be a “massively heavyweight” issue if Red Bull broke last year’s budget, which was set at £114million.
If they are found guilty, potential penalties include points deductions or even “exclusion from the championship”.
That could see Verstappen stripped of the title he won last year in Abu Dhabi and Hamilton installed as winner for a record eighth time.
Wolff, Hamilton’s boss at Mercedes, was asked if it was serious or just usual F1 politics.
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He replied:  “That’s heavyweight, that’s massively heavyweight. It was a huge, mammoth project to make the cap.
“I don’t know how many tens of millions we had to restructure processes to be below the cap.
“We are using used parts, we are not running what we would want to run, and we are not developing what we could be developing.
“We have made more than 40 people redundant.”

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Red Bull are adamant that they submitted their accounts in March and are under the proposed cost cap.
The FIA are due to reveal their findings on Wednesday. More