Lewis Hamilton says he never expected to get an apology from the FIA, after Formula 1's governing body published their findings over the events of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Last year's title decider between Hamilton and Max Verstappen was dominated by the Briton until a late Safety Car resulted in a hugely controversial - and well-documented - ending to the race. The FIA, under new President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, carried out a detailed investigation into the race to compile a report and establish recommendations, with the aim of ensuring that such circumstances don't arise again. That report was published on the Saturday of the Bahrain Grand Prix, and Hamilton, who lost out on the title after the contentious final laps in Abu Dhabi, has given his initial reaction. "Honestly, I haven't seen the report," he told media, including RacingNews365.com . "I saw it from a distance, but I've not read it, so I've been focused on getting the job done today."
Hamilton "never expected an apology"
Hamilton was then told about some of the contents of the report, including the fact that there was no contrition on the part of the FIA in how they presented the report. In response, the seven-time World Champion explained that he had never expected otherwise. "I'll read it maybe after the weekend, or something like that," he commented. "Look, I wasn't expecting an apology. It's not really something I'm really focused on. We know that's the way it is and that wasn't going to probably happen. "But the fact is that at least there is that transparency, admitting to human error. I think that's a positive step. "We can't go back and change the past, unfortunately, and so I just look at focusing on doing what I can do now and trying to shape the future, working with this team, trying to get our car into a [good] window – we've got a bit of work to do."
Hamilton welcomes the arrival of new Race Directors
With the FIA appointing two men to act as Race Director at alternating Grands Prix this year, Niels Wittich is in charge for the Bahrain Grand Prix. It's the first time anyone but Michael Masi has overseen a race weekend since the death of Charles Whiting at the beginning of the 2019 season, and Hamilton said he welcomed Wittich's arrival into the paddock. "I think the best Race Director I ever had was Charlie [Whiting] – obviously, we miss him," he said. "But we welcome our new one and his approach to things seemed very straightforward and very sensible. "I look forward to hopefully seeing him apply rules fairly moving forwards and hopefully [it's a] clean year."
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