F1 LIVE: Lewis Hamilton raises alarm after fans enter track at Australian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton raised the alarm towards the end of the Australian Grand Prix as some fans came inside the fence perimeter before the race had ended.
A hectic and entertaining grand prix, won by Max Verstappen, saw an F1 record of three red flags thrown and carnage ensue at the end of the race, with fans climbing the perimeter fencing and a group making their way inside the fence too.
Hamilton, who finished second, made the point to his race engineer Peter Bonnington: “There’s people on the track, man, some fans have got on.”
Elsewhere, Max Verstappen slammed the FIA for their decision-making in Melbourne, Hamilton delivered a reality check to Mercedes after finishing on the podium for the first time this season while the whole grand prix weekend points to a wrangle right at the heart of Formula 1’s future.
Follow all the latest F1 news and reaction after the Australian GP
F1 LATEST NEWS AND UPDATES
COMMENT: Chaotic Australian Grand Prix reveals the dilemma at the heart of F1’s future
Lewis Hamilton raised the alarm as fans entered the track before the race ended
Carlos Sainz was raging after his five-second penalty saw him miss out on points
Click HERE for the standings at the Australian Grand Prix
FULL CLASSIFICATION at Australian Grand Prix
10:35 , Kieran Jackson
1) Max Verstappen (25 points)
2) Lewis Hamilton (18 points)
3) Fernando Alonso (15 points)
4) Lance Stroll (12 points)
5) Sergio Perez (10 points + 1 point, fastest lap)
6) Lando Norris (8 points)
7) Nico Hulkenberg (6 points)
8) Oscar Piastri (4 points)
9) Zhou Guanyu (2 points)
10) Yuki Tsunoda (1 point)
11) Valtteri Bottas
12) Carlos Sainz
13) Pierre Gasly - DNF
14) Esteban Ocon - DNF
15) Nyck de Vries - DNF
16) Logan Sargeant - DNF
17) Kevin Magnussen - DNF
18) George Russell - DNF
19) Alex Albon - DNF
20) Charles Leclerc - DNF
Max Verstappen blames F1 stewards for ‘mess’ of Australian Grand Prix ending
10:31 , Kieran Jackson
Max Verstappen called the bizarre conclusion to Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix a “confusing mess” and accused Formula One’s stewards of bringing the chaos on themselves.
Verstappen survived the mayhem to take his second victory from the opening three races and extend his championship lead over team-mate Sergio Perez to 15 points.
Lewis Hamilton finished second to claim both his and Mercedes’ first podium of the year, with Fernando Alonso third for Aston Martin. Perez drove back from last to fifth, while George Russell retired with an engine failure.
Verstappen’s first triumph on Melbourne soil was placed in danger on lap 54 of 58 when Kevin Magnussen’s right-rear tyre flew off his Haas after he smashed into the Albert Park wall.
With debris on the asphalt, the stewards stopped the race for a second time following Alex Albon’s earlier smash.
Max Verstappen blames F1 stewards for ‘mess’ of Australian Grand Prix ending
F1 news: Chaotic Australian Grand Prix reveals the dilemma at the heart of F1’s future
10:25 , Kieran Jackson
Comment by Kieran Jackson
Surely, the irony was not lost on some. An absorbing, highly-charged grand prix weekend down under started with bickering over the future of the Formula 1 race weekend. So much so in fact, amid a potential change of the sprint weekend structure, that reigning world champion Max Verstappen threatened to walk away from the sport.
By Sunday evening, with the race result finally confirmed just past 11pm in Melbourne, driver debate had turned to the throwing of red flags and the FIA’s justification for such actions. Three red flags were thrown in an action-packed race: an F1 record.
And who was present looking on, returning to the paddock for the first time since that day? That’s right, Michael Masi: the highly-criticised Australian at the helm for the Abu Dhabi controversy which concluded the 2021 season.
Masi was present at Albert Park in his new role as the chairman of the Australian Supercars series yet was spotted embracing, among others, Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley on Thursday. Needless to say, any welcome was not so warm at Mercedes.
Since that bungling of the safety car procedure, which resulted in Verstappen winning his first World Championship and Lewis Hamilton missing out on a record-breaking eighth crown, F1 has found itself in a wrangle.
Chaotic Australian Grand Prix reveals dilemma at the heart of F1’s future
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton raised alarm as fans entered track at Australian Grand Prix
10:23 , Kieran Jackson
Lewis Hamilton raised the alarm towards the end of the Australian Grand Prix as some fans came inside the fence perimeter before the race had ended.
A hectic and entertaining grand prix, won by Max Verstappen, saw an F1 record of three red flags thrown and carnage ensue at the end of the race, with fans climbing the perimeter fencing and a group making their way inside the fence too.
Hamilton, who finished second, made the point to his race engineer Peter Bonnington: “There’s people on the track, man, some fans have got on.”
