Lewis Hamilton to miss Grand Prix after positive test

 

Lewis Hamilton will not be involved in this weekend’s Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain having tested positive for Covid-19, Formula one has announced.

Hamilton, who has already been crowned world champion for the season, won at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday.

Formula One announced that Hamilton woke up on Monday with mild symptoms and returned a positive test.

F1 have said that a contact prior to Hamilton’s arrival in Bahrain had also tested positive with the Brit now isolating in accordance with Covid-19 protocols and public health guidelines in Bahrain.

Hamilton is the third F1 driver to test positive for Covid-19 this season, following Sergio Perez at Silverstone and Lance Stroll in Germany.

Mercedes are set to confirm Hamilton’s replacement for this weekend’s Sakhir Grand Prix in due course.

Hamilton remains a doubt for the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, set for December 13, as he will need to return a negative test before race weekend.

A Mercedes statement read: “Lewis was tested three times last week and returned a negative result each time, the last of which was on Sunday afternoon at the Bahrain International Circuit as part of the standard race weekend testing programme.

“However, he woke up on Monday morning with mild symptoms and was informed at the same time that a contact prior to arrival in Bahrain had subsequently tested positive.

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“Lewis therefore took a further test and returned a positive result. This has since been confirmed by a retest.”

Hamilton earned the win in Bahrain in a race that will be remembered for the horrendous incident involving Romain Grosjean.

The Haas driver crashed on the first lap with the driver somehow escaping from a fireball that saw his car split the barrier and end up in half.