Formula 1 Race Director Michael Masi says Lewis Hamilton's slow driving during the third practice session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was "not great at all". Hamilton appeared to block Pierre Gasly at Turn 1, which forced the AlphaTauri driver to go off the track. Moments later, Hamilton was driving slowly through Turns 7 and 8 as Nikita Mazepin approached on a flying lap. Mazepin had to cut the corner to avoid a high-speed collision.
FIA to talk to Mercedes
Haas asked Masi what his thoughts were on the incident in FP3. Masi replied: "Not great at all, which is why I will deal with it with the team directly. "I've also had a chat to them here because there was no flags of any form shown through that sector for Nikita or Lewis." Hamilton wasn't pleased with his team, stating that he was unaware there was a car coming up to him at high speed "You didn't tell me, man," said Hamilton on the team radio. "I had no idea he was coming."
FIA warn drivers ahead of qualifying
The FIA have already warned the drivers about driving slowly when they are not on a flying lap. There have been several near misses during the practice sessions in Saudi Arabia, due to the blind corners and high speeds. New rules for the weekend state drivers should not slow down from Turns 23 to 25 to create a gap to the car in front, whilst a minimum lap time has also been imposed for qualifying.
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