Lewis Hamilton has described the frightening Ferrari pit-stop incident that left his “heart beating really fast” during the Belgian Grand Prix. The mechanic struck by the front-right tyre of Hamilton’s car escaped without injury, while the FIA determined that the seven-time Formula 1 world champion was not responsible for the unsafe release.
Hamilton therefore retained fourth place at Spa-Francorchamps and avoided an additional sporting penalty, having already received five seconds for his opening-lap contact with George Russell. Ferrari was instead fined €30,000, of which €10,000 is suspended for 12 months, following the alarming incident during a race in which Charles Leclerc finished second and Lewis Hamilton recovered to fourth.
Lewis Hamilton cleared after Ferrari mechanic incident
“My heart was really beating fast,” Lewis Hamilton admitted after learning that the mechanic had escaped unharmed. Ferrari quickly confirmed that the team member was fine following the contact, which occurred as Hamilton attempted to leave his pit box.
The British driver was not given a further penalty and retained his finishing position. The stewards instead held Ferrari responsible for releasing car number 44 in unsafe circumstances, imposing a €30,000 fine for the procedural failure.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged that the mistake had been made by the team rather than its driver.
“It was a team error,” Fred Vasseur admitted. “Hamilton had the green light and set off. That means he was absolutely not at fault: his actions were correct.”
What happened during Lewis Hamilton’s Belgian GP pit stop
The incident occurred when Lewis Hamilton entered the pits under Virtual Safety Car conditions to complete his only scheduled stop and serve the five-second penalty imposed for his contact with George Russell at the start.
The punishment had been issued after the first-lap collision eliminated the Mercedes driver from the race. The FIA later provided a detailed explanation of why Lewis Hamilton was penalised for the George Russell contact, although George Russell himself subsequently described the clash as a racing incident.
Once the five-second penalty had been served, Ferrari’s mechanics completed the tyre change. A member of the pit crew then approached the front of the car with a tool to make an adjustment to the front wing.
However, the green light signalling that Lewis Hamilton was permitted to leave had already been activated. The Ferrari driver accelerated as soon as he saw the signal, unintentionally striking the mechanic with the front-right tyre of the SF-26.
The television pictures showed how serious the consequences could have been. The mechanic was knocked down after being struck on the leg, prompting immediate concern that he might have suffered a significant injury. Fortunately, he escaped without any physical consequences.
Footage of the Ferrari pit-stop incident showed Lewis Hamilton stopping almost immediately after noticing the mechanic beside the car.
Lewis Hamilton explains why he left the Ferrari pit box
Lewis Hamilton described the scare and explained that he had simply followed Ferrari’s normal release procedure. From the cockpit, the green light indicated that the pit stop had been completed and that the car was clear to move.
“I don’t know what happened,” Lewis Hamilton said. “The green light came on. I was supposed to accelerate as the car was being lowered, and that is what I did.”
“Then I saw him on my right and stopped. My heart was really beating fast for a second, but I’m just grateful that he wasn’t hurt.”
The incident added further tension to an already eventful Belgian Grand Prix for Lewis Hamilton. After the early collision, George Russell refused to place the blame entirely on his former Mercedes teammate, arguing that his own car’s loss of power had contributed to the situation that left the two drivers fighting for the same piece of track.
Why the FIA fined Ferrari but did not penalise Hamilton
The FIA chose not to impose a sporting penalty on Lewis Hamilton because he reacted immediately, stopped the car and lost time as a consequence of the incident. The stewards concluded that the driver had followed the green-light signal and was not responsible for the communication failure within the Ferrari pit crew.
Ferrari was fined €30,000, with €10,000 of that amount suspended for 12 months. The suspended portion will remain conditional on the team avoiding a similar offence during that period.
Ferrari must also submit a report to the FIA within 14 days, explaining the incident and outlining the protocols introduced to reduce the risk of a similar situation occurring again.
“The competitor, Ferrari, is fined €30,000, of which €10,000 is suspended for 12 months, on condition that the competitor does not commit a similar infringement in the meantime and that, within 14 days, it submits a report to the FIA regarding the incident and the protocols introduced to mitigate the risk of such an incident occurring again in the future,” the official decision stated.
The FIA explained that Ferrari had accepted that releasing car number 44 in those circumstances was unsafe. The team attributed the mistake to a late instruction concerning the front-wing adjustment, unclear communication and the mechanic’s failure to notice that the green light had been activated.
“The team acknowledged that releasing car number 44 in these circumstances was unsafe and attributed the error to a late instruction for the wing adjustment, a lack of clear communication and the mechanic’s failure to notice the green light,” the ruling continued. “The team committed to reviewing its pit-stop procedures to ensure that an incident of this kind is not repeated.”
Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton ultimately avoided the worst possible outcome. The mechanic was unhurt, the driver was cleared of responsibility and the team has now committed to changing its procedures after one of the most alarming moments of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend.
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