Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race Results

I would not use Halo - Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton says he would not use the Halo device if it is not made mandatory by the FIA in future seasons.

Ferrari has been trialling its version of the Halo device during the final pre-season test in Barcelona, with Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel both completing an installation lap each to check the visibility with the cockpit protection. Hamilton took to Instagram on Thursday night call it the "worst looking mod", pleading for it not to be introduced.

Asked after his final morning of testing if he expects the FIA to move ahead with plans to bring the Halo device in, Hamilton replied: "Like in what I said [on Instagram] I really, really hope not.

"If it is going to come in I hope that we have an option to use it or not because I will not be using it on my car!"

Explaining his thoughts in more detail, Hamilton argues the device is designed to protect the driver in the car, so each driver should be allowed the choice of whether to use it or not.

"I hope that's not what they're bringing, I really do. Ultimately it's the driver's protection so we should have a choice individually, I should be able to decide whether to have to put that on my car, because it wouldn't be something that I would choose.

"I like it the way it is now. When I get in the car I know there is a certain risk. Safety is a very, very important issue for sure but there are risks that we take and you have to decide how much of a risk you are going to take and for me I would rather drive without it and risk it."

Follow live coverage and timing from pre-season testing here

GALLERY: Pre-season testing

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.