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Lewis Hamilton and his fellow F1 drivers have been urged by former racing driver Kris Nissen to comply with the FIA’s new mandate on fireproof underwear and jewelry.
After a fiery crash in 1988 at Fuji, Nissen emerged from the incident largely unscathed due to the FIA-mandated fireproof overalls. He thought it was “ridiculous” that current F1 drivers were refusing to comply with the necessary safety standards.
Speaking to RaceFans, he said:
“It is totally ridiculous not to follow these rules and not do as much as you can for your own safety.”
He added:
“I think it’s very important that the people understand that you do not have full safety, but you have much better safety if you are wearing the FIA-approved safety equipment.”
Furthermore, the Danish driver felt that it was unwise for drivers to wear jewelry within the cockpit. Recollecting his own experience after the horrific Fuji crash, he revealed that his right arm suffered higher degree burns as he was wearing a metal bracelet.
Given that most metals are good conductors of heat, he felt that wearing any metal jewelry was counterproductive.
He said:
“I don’t want to make any advertising regarding my accident or anything. But I am happy to tell every race driver that it is the best idea to follow the rules and for sure it is not a good idea to wear any form of metal.”
Hamilton has been given until the Monaco GP to rid himself of his nose stud.
Lewis Hamilton “praying for improvements” at Spanish GP
Lewis Hamilton says he is praying that the upgrades that Mercedes have brought to the Spanish GP will yield much-needed improvements. Despite the team’s woes this season, the Briton remains optimistic of the team’s potential at Barcelona. Speaking to Sky Sports, he said:
"I'm always optimistic coming into a weekend. I'm praying, keeping hopes up on a daily basis and [I have] pure faith and trust in the team that we're going to get there. The potential is there for sure."
The Spanish GP is a great opportunity for Mercedes to test out their new parts and ascertain whether they should stick to their current developmental direction, as they have a wealth of data about the car from the same venue from pre-season testing. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton will be hoping to get back to his winning ways at Barcelona after a disappointing few races.
