Lewis Hamilton has been handed a reprimand by Azerbaijan Grand Prix stewards following his “f****** dangerous” impeding of Liam Lawson in practice.
During FP2, with Lawson on a flying lap, Hamilton moved slowly through Turn 19, the final, unsighted corner on the lap as cars thread the needle between the barriers.
Lawson was unimpressed over the radio, branding the move “f****** dangerous” as he was forced to check up and avoid ramming into the back of the Ferrari.
Ultimately, the stewards decided to hand Hamilton a reprimand, his second of the season.
It was found during the investigation that Hamilton had failed to follow the race director’s competition notes, ordering cars on out or slow laps to “remain on the extreme left from the exit of Turn 16 to the entry of Turn 18” so they can then avoid impeding into Turn 19.
Hamilton did not remain on the extreme left and stayed on the racing line as Lawson approached, causing the lift-off, and Hamilton did not follow the race director’s instructions, and therefore “unnecessarily impeded” Lawson.
With the “severe” nature of the impeding, the reprimand was issued, although the stewards did take into account the “difficulty to manage energy deployment from Turn 16 to Turn 19 and the end of the lap.”