Lewis Hamilton recounted that his "heart truly dropped" when his Ferrari clipped a pit‑lane mechanic during a chaotic stop that later resulted in a hefty fine from the Belgian Grand Prix stewards. The incident unfolded when Hamilton’s right‑front tyre made contact with a crew member who was positioned in front of the wheel to adjust the front wing. Although the mechanic was shaken and briefly knocked to his knees, he suffered no injuries. Immediately after the impact, Hamilton halted his car, allowing the team to assist the mechanic back to his feet before re‑entering the pit lane.
The episode triggered a post‑race investigation, and Ferrari was subsequently slapped with a €30,000 penalty, €10,000 of which will be suspended for a year pending future conduct. Ferrari accepted responsibility, acknowledging an "inappropriately late instruction for the wing adjustment, a lack of clear communication and the mechanic's failure to notice the green light" amid what they described as a "complex and unusual combination of circumstances." The pit stop was already complicated because Hamilton had been serving a five‑second penalty for a collision with George Russell on the opening lap, meaning the crew had to wait before beginning the tyre change. Stewards found no fault with Hamilton, noting that he also endured a "sporting disadvantage" because the penalty delayed his departure from the pit box. Consequently, his fourth‑place finish stood, moving him back into second place in the Drivers' Championship, 45 points behind race winner Kimi Antonelli and ahead of George Russell.
After the race, Hamilton reflected on the moment, saying his thoughts instantly flashed back to a similar, far more serious incident at the 2018 Bahrain Grand Prix, when a botched Ferrari stop for Kimi Raikkonen resulted in mechanic Francesco Cigarini suffering a double leg fracture. When Hamilton asked over team radio whether the mechanic was okay, he was relieved to learn there were no injuries. "The green light went and so I went," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "You're looking over here [to the left at the lights] you're not looking over there, so that's more probably on the team, ultimately.
But when it happened, then I noticed him and I stopped and it just went through my mind in that moment was back when Kimi hit and [a mechanic] broke a leg and my heart really sank for a second. I'm really grateful he's OK." The pit stop had already been lengthened because Ferrari's crew first had to wait the five‑second penalty period before changing the tyres. The penalty itself stemmed from Hamilton’s earlier collision with Russell at Les Combes, which spun Russell out of the race.
Russell later blamed his own car’s straight‑line speed deficit rather than Hamilton for the incident on the long Kemmel Straight. In his post‑race interview, Hamilton chose not to dwell on the details of the collision, instead taking responsibility for his qualifying position.
He explained that a crash in the final practice session forced him to start sixth, which became fifth after Lando Norris received an engine penalty. "I don’t count on myself being unlucky; I think about the mistake I made yesterday, so I take full responsibility for the fourth place I ended up getting," he said. He added that damage to the car during the race, followed by an imperfect rebuild, altered the suspension balance, costing him a few tenths of a second in qualifying. "Then I ended up further back, got in the incident, five‑second penalty, so like a domino effect from a mistake of my own.
But the team have been doing a great job with strategy and pit stops. We are continuing to improve the car.
I think our pace today, without the damage, we could have been challenging for the win," Hamilton concluded. Looking ahead, Formula 1 will head to Budapest for the Hungarian Grand Prix, with every session broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 starting this Friday. Fans can stream Sky Sports via NOW with no contract and cancel at any time.