‘Lewis Hamilton ruined the race’ – Fernando Alonso holds secret talks with FIA after controversial ‘Spanish’ crash theory

Fernando Alonso has doubled down on his claim that Lewis Hamilton escaped a penalty in Miami “because he’s not Spanish”.

The former McLaren teammates were involved in a first-corner crash during Saturday’s sprint that knocked Lando Norris and Lance Stroll out of the race.

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Hamilton – starting 12th on the grid – made a daring move on the inside of Alonso during the first lap at Hard Rock Stadium.

The Briton’s lunge forced the Spaniard to confront Aston Martin teammate Lance Stroll – who, in turn, crashed into Norris and forced them both into early retirement.

Hamilton took advantage of the accident to move up the grid, but Alonso lost the classification due to a puncture and subsequently finished 17th.

The Mercedes driver immediately stressed on the radio that he had noticed a “gap”, but his rivals took a darker view of his actions.

The stewards, however, decided not to punish Hamilton for the incident, although he later saw his eighth place demoted to 16th for a drive-through penalty due to speeding in the race lane. stands.

“Lewis was inside, a little out of control, but I guess they won’t decide anything, because he’s not Spanish,” Alonso said later.

“But he spoiled the race for a few people, especially Norris, who had a very fast car and he was eliminated in that incident.”

Alonso was later seen leaving the FIA ​​hospitality after a meeting with President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

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The 43-year-old arrived in Miami following a public protest to the stewards over his 10-second penalty during the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race.

Alonso later revealed he had avoided attempting to overtake his former Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon in Florida for fear of similar punishment.

He then reiterated his claim that driver nationality had an impact in FIA investigations into on-track incidents.

“I think nationality matters,” he said.

“I will speak with Mohammed (Ben Sulayem, FIA president), with the FIA, whatever.

“I have to make sure there is nothing wrong with my nationality or anything that could influence a decision – not just for me, but also for the future generation of Spanish drivers who need to be protected.”

Norris also blamed his fellow Briton for ending his race prematurely.

“Lewis dove inside and caused the incident,” Norris told F1’s official channel. “There was nothing I could do about it.”