F1 bans bling... but Lewis says he can’t remove jewellery from ‘sensitive area’
FORMULA 1 legend Lewis Hamilton will compete in today’s Miami Grand Prix after compromising over a jewellery ban.
The seven-time world champion had threatened to pull out of the event after authorities insisted he raced without his earrings and studs on safety grounds.
But he eventually agreed to remove all but two of his adornments – one of them a nose stud that can only be taken out mechanically, the other thought to be a piercing in a more sensitive part of the body.
The 37-year-old had said previously: ‘I can’t remove at least two of them. One, I can’t really explain where it is. But what I can say is it’s platinum that I have, so it’s not magnetic. It’s never been a safety issue in the past.
‘I’ve worn [jewellery] for 16 years, had so many MRI scans and not had to take out the platinum, for example, because it’s not been an issue.’
Bosses at the FIA, the sport’s governing body, say body piercings and neck chains are banned because they lessen the protection given by the drivers’ flameproof clothing. They have insisted that metallic objects can ‘reduce heat transmission protection and increase the risk of burn injuries in the event of a fire’.
They have also warned that jewellery ‘can hinder both medical interventions as well as subsequent diagnosis and treatment should it be required following an accident’.
Under the agreement reached ahead of today’s race, Hamilton will also be allowed to keep his nose stud and other piece of jewellery for the Spanish Grand Prix on May 22. But there is the potential for another stand-off the following week when the racing moves to Monaco.
Toto Wolff, the head’s of Hamilton’s Mercedes team, said: ‘We know that this is important to Lewis. Without going into detail, where the piercings stayed and where they didn’t, I am sure it will come to a good resolution.’
On Friday, a defiant Hamilton appeared at a press conference in Miami wearing eight rings, four necklaces, three watches and two bracelets. He said of the FIA at the time: ‘If they stop me, then so be it. We’ve got a spare driver. We’re well prepped for the weekend. There’s a lot to do in the city anyway, so it will be good either way.’
Hamilton, who is originally from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, is the richest British sports star ever, with his wealth estimated at £224 million.
His property portfolio includes a house in Monaco and an apartment in New York. Hamilton began karting at the age of eight and two years later became the youngest driver to win the British cadet championships in the sport.
Following the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis in May 2020, Hamilton – the only black driver in Formula 1 – wore T-shirts with the Black Lives Matter slogan.
Hamilton also criticised prominent figures in F1 for keeping quiet about the issue.
‘If they stop me then we’ve got a spare driver’