Lewis Hamilton was testing the Ferrari car out for the first time (Image: X)
risked a serious injury as he hopped off the back of a moving golf buggy during the first week of Formula One pre-season testing in Bahrain.
Hamilton took the new car for a spin in Bahrain on Wednesday, with the seven-time Drivers’ Championship winner one of the first out onto the track.
It proved a dicey practice session for Hamilton, who , but it was while he was being transported around the paddock his biggest near-miss occurred.
The Brit had been sitting on the back of a golf buggy that was moving at some speed when he decided to leap off the back without any prior warning.
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Just about managing to stay on his feet, a stumbling Hamilton tried to brush off his near miss, while looking immediately regretful about the stunt he’d tried to pull off.
Turning back towards his team-mates, who at this point had come to a full stop, he giggled: “That was close,” before heading into the garage.
Hamilton registered over 40 laps of the Bahrain track, posting a fastest lap of 1m31.834s.
The ex- man is searching for a record-breaking eighth world championship victory, having been stuck on seven – the same number as Formula One legend Michael Schumacher – since his last win in 2020.
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It would require a slip-up from four-in-a-row champion , but according to one ex-Formula One star, the man could be in for a rocky ride this season.
Juan Pablo Montoya isn’t expecting the Dutchman to maintain his levels this season, saying: “Verstappen is not going to be a problem for Lewis this year.
“I would be surprised if came out to fight like in recent years. You just start moving sideways or even backwards.
“If you keep going based on wrong principles, you’re never going to get out of the hole. And that hole can be very deep, that’s the problem. Max doesn’t like to lose, and Max is a guy who would rather crash than let himself be beaten.”
Lewis Hamilton took to the track in the new Ferrari car (Image: Getty)
He continued: “We saw it at the end of last year, when he did things that surprised people. We were wondering: ‘Why did he do that?’
“When he went up against Lewis [to end Hamilton’s dominance] and took no prisoners, everyone thought: ‘Oh, great. Finally someone is standing up to Hamilton’. Now the positions are reversed.’”
The first race of the season comes from Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix next month.