Lewis Hamilton has been warned and Ferrari fined €10,000 (£8,503) after stewards ruled that the Mercedes driver unnecessarily impeded Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto during the second practice session for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. The incident occurred as Formula 1 returned to the Sepang International Circuit for the first time in nine years.
Bortoleto was visibly frustrated by the encounter, while Hamilton was cautioned for moving onto the racing line at slow speed. Stewards noted that Hamilton’s car was traveling at approximately 80-85 km/h approaching Turn 9, while the Audi was coming up from behind at roughly 240 km/h on an out lap. This resulted in a closing speed differential of about 155-160 km/h.
The official statement from the stewards indicated that Hamilton shifted from the middle of the track toward the racing line, forcing the faster-moving Bortoleto to brake and take evasive action. Although the stewards acknowledged that Hamilton’s right-hand mirror was damaged and that he had not received a radio warning from his team, they maintained that the impediment was unnecessary.
Team representatives stated that radio warnings are typically not issued for cars that are not on a push lap. However, the stewards determined that Ferrari should have provided appropriate warnings regardless of the approaching car’s lap status, given their knowledge of the damaged mirror. Mitigating factors included the fact that Bortoleto remained in control of his vehicle and avoided a potential collision.
The high track temperatures and rough surface at Sepang caused significant tyre degradation during Friday’s sessions, presenting a major challenge for the teams. Charles Leclerc topped the timesheets in second practice, while Red Bull and Max Verstappen demonstrated strong pace. Mercedes introduced a major upgrade package but struggled to match the leading contenders, whereas McLaren showed promising speed over long runs.
Final practice is scheduled to begin at 5:30 am ahead of qualifying, which will take place later in the morning at 9 am.
Is Sepang’s rough surface back? That tire degradation story sounds painful for the afternoon session.
Ferrari fined for not warning? Makes sense. Drivers can’t hear everything over the radio with engine noise.
That closing speed differential is insane. Hamilton really didn’t see him coming despite the mirror damage.