Lewis Hamilton wants robot F1 stewards as Brit left frustrated with FIA

Lewis Hamilton has urged the FIA to investigate the use of artificial intelligence in the stewards’ room following the latest penalty-related controversy, which involved rival Max Verstappen in Singapore.

These comments come after Verstappen was only handed two reprimands off the back of three separate investigations into his driving standards during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix last weekend. 

The Dutch driver impeded Logan Sargeant in Q1 and more blatantly ruined Yuki Tsunoda’s lap, while also blocking drivers from leaving the pit lane in a separate infringement during the first part of the qualifying session.

Despite these incidents which many F1 pundits viewed as slam-dunk penalties, Verstappen walked away virtually scot-free, albeit with the disappointment of being forced to start the Grand Prix from outside the top ten. 

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Speaking to Motorsport.com about potential changes, Hamilton said: “How many years have we…. That rule has been the same for ages, you know? I think we need to start looking into AI for this sort of thing, so we get good decisions.”

The seven-time world champion was then asked whether or not a permanent set of stewards could aid the situation, to which he reiterated: “I would like to see whether AI could do a better job or not.”

These comments were echoed by Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate with George Russell adding: “It was definitely a bit strange to see even Max got away with those reprimands last week.

“We obviously always look for consistency. We appreciate it’s not easy in the best of times, but last week was obviously a bit of a slam dunk. So it was strange why it didn’t happen.”

Unfortunately for the rest of the field, Verstappen’s qualifying woes were contained to his miserable Singapore GP weekend. The Dutch star bounced back in style at Suzuka on Saturday, taking pole position by a mighty six-tenths of a second.

Verstappen has been the fastest man on track all weekend, topping all three practice sessions ahead of Saturday’s qualifying stint and sending a warning shot to his rivals as he looks to clinch the title in Qatar next time out.