Hamilton escapes tyre punishment
Lewis Hamilton is on the verge of winning the world championship
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Friday, 19, Oct 2007 10:16
Lewis Hamilton has avoided punishment for breaking tyre regulations in yesterday's Brazilian grand prix practice session but McLaren have been fined for the mistake.
Hamilton was the fastest driver in the session, but he along with Honda's Jenson Button and Super Aguri's Takuma Sato, who also used two sets of wet-weather tyres, faced a steward's investigation.
Rules state that drivers are only allowed to use one set of wet-weather tyres in a practice session and McLaren boss Ron Dennis admitted his team had breached regulations.
He said: "Despite topping the time sheets today has not been perfect for us as we made a mistake in this morning's session and used one set of tyres too many on Lewis's car. This was unfortunate and clearly did not provide any advantage."
McLaren have been fined €15,000 (£10,445) for the transgression.
Hamilton leads the world title race by four points from his team-mate and twice world champion Fernando Alonso heading into the final race of the season, with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen a further three points behind.
Alonso has been at loggerheads with Hamilton all season, but admitted that he also didn't know about the rules in regards to wet tyres.
"I don't think we were totally aware of this rule," said Alonso. "I probably would have done the same thing."
Fans are expecting a fantastic tussle between the three drivers over the weekend, but if it continues to rain then the drivers will have to work extra hard to become F1 champion.
"It was pretty evil out there in the wet," said Hamilton, who is aiming to be the first driver to win the world championship in his debut season.