Lewis Hamilton out of Bahrain GP after positive Covid-19 test
Seven-time F1 champ is otherwise fit and healthy but won’t compete in this weekend’s race
Lewis Hamilton has returned two positive tests for Covid-19 and will be unable to compete in this weekend’s Grand Prix in Bahrain.
It means he will have to wait to equal the record number of wins in a season, which currently stands at 13.
Hamilton won Sunday’s Bahrain GP, his 11th win of the season, and had tested negative in the run up to that race. But on Monday morning he is said to have woken up displaying mild symptoms.
According to a statement from his Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team, a contact of Hamilton’s, whom he met before the Bahrain GP, has since tested positive. “Lewis is now isolating in accordance with COVID-19 protocols and public health authority guidelines,” the team stated.
It’s unclear at the moment as to who will replace him for the Bahrain GP. Stoffel Vandoorne is the official reserve driver of Mercedes so would seem strongly placed to step up, following his Formula E test at Valencia.
Other possibilities include Esteban Gutierrez, Mercedes’ simulator driver, while Nico Hulkenburg (this season’s super-sub following his stint as stand-in for Racing Point’s Sergio Perez) has also featured in the rumour mill.
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