Never-before-seen video shows Lewis Hamilton making a rude hand gesture at another driver during the Miami Grand Prix.
During the Miami Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton made a quick gesture with one finger at another driver while passing them. Hamilton finished the race in seventh place but moved up to sixth after his teammate Charles Leclerc received a 20-second penalty from the FIA stewards after the race.
At the start, Hamilton gained several positions but had to avoid Max Verstappen’s spinning Red Bull at turn three. Later, near turn 11, he bumped into Franco Colapinto’s Alpine, which caused serious damage to his Ferrari’s floor and right side. This damage cost him about half a second of downforce per lap, making it hard for him to get a good result in the fourth race of the season.
Hamilton told Crash.net, “I lost about half a second of downforce and was basically just trying to get as many points as possible with the damaged car. We made progress in qualifying, and I felt strong going into the race.”
The crash happened when Colapinto tried to pass Hamilton on the tight turn 11. Although Colapinto stayed on the track, he left almost no space on the outside, causing the heavy damage. Later, when Hamilton passed Colapinto again on the straight, he showed his frustration with a finger gesture, making clear he wasn’t happy with the earlier move.
Despite this, they probably won’t have hard feelings since they respect each other a lot. Colapinto has even called Hamilton his childhood hero. Hamilton also praised Colapinto and fellow rookie Ollie Bearman for their great first races in Azerbaijan. He said, “When I started in Formula 1, I didn’t get a warm welcome. It’s tough being young and new, but these two are doing amazing—it’s great to see their talent and bright futures.”
Colapinto bounced back from the incident and finished seventh in Miami, also benefiting from Leclerc’s penalty. His strong performance shows he has a bright future in Formula 1.