Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton revealed ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix that he has been fasting to avoid breaching the FIA’s rules.
After every grand prix, all drivers are weighed whilst wearing their helmet, race suit and shoes with the FIA introducing a minimum weight limit in 2019 which currently sits at 82kg.
If a driver is found to be under this reading, additional weight will be added to their car to check that they have not gained an unfair advantage by running lighter than their competitors, and the driver could be penalised.
However, Hamilton’s concerns were not about being underweight, rather the opposite, voicing his fears that he could be over the weight limit.
Speaking on stage at the fan zone in Austria, Hamilton admitted he had to fast to meet the weight limit and said: “The first thing I do in the morning is weigh myself every day, and my weight this morning… I’m 76 kilos.
“So I can’t eat anything till very much later because when you put the kit on, your suit, boots, helmet, everything weighs like four and a half kilos. And the weight limit is basically 81, is it?” before team-mate Charles Leclerc kindly corrected him on the 82 kg ruling.
Hamilton then added: “Yeah, so I’m on the limit right today. So I’m gonna fast all day and try and get my weight down. Then I can have, for dinner, the pancakes.”
Why isn’t Hamilton allowed to be overweight?
Hamilton is likely concerned with exceeding the weight limit because it could ruin his lap times this weekend, as carrying excess weight in a F1 car hampers a drivers’ speed.
Leclerc, who was also present on stage during the fan event, confirmed that his own weight was close to the limit and would also be fasting.
“Yeah, so I’m on the limit right today. So I’m gonna fast all day and try and get my weight down. Then I can have, for dinner, the pancakes,” he added.
Hamilton has previously explained how much an extra kilo of weight can cost a driver, during an appearance on the Graham Norton Show, where he revealed: “Ten kilos of fuel in the car costs three-tenths of a second every circuit, per lap.
“So if I’m one kilo overweight, I can lose up to two seconds in the race distance. So my weight is very important.”
