Hamilton feared repeat of infamous Ferrari accident after Spa pit lane drama

The seven-time world champion endured a heart-stopping moment when he came in for Ferrari's double-stack pit stop under the Virtual Safety Car. Hamilton accidentally struck a mechanic who attempted to make a last-second adjustment to his front wing just as the pit box light turned green. Although the British driver stopped immediately, the mechanic had already been knocked to the ground by the car. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

Reflecting on the unsettling incident after the Belgian Grand Prix, Hamilton admitted he was simply grateful that the mechanic had escaped unharmed.

"Oh, God, I'm just grateful that the mechanic didn't get hurt," Hamilton told GPblog, among others.

When pressed further to explain exactly what had transpired during the pit stop, Hamilton noted how his attention was fixed on the pit lights and the car before revealing that his mind immediately went back to Kimi Raikkonen's infamous pit lane accident in 2018 when he saw the mechanic fall to the ground.

"Well, I mean, I'm looking at the lights and the car. I'm supposed to go when the light's dropping, and I went, and then I saw him to my right, and I stopped as soon as I could,” Hamilton continued.

"Luckily, all I could think at the time was back when Kimi [Raikkonen] did a leg, and I was like, 'Oh.' That's what I thought initially, but he got up and moved,” he concluded.

During the 2018 Bahrain Grand Prix, then-Ferrari driver Raikkonen ran over the leg of mechanic Francesco Cigarini, who suffered a double fracture in the incident. The FIA stewards subsequently investigated Hamilton's pit stop after determining that the release may have been unsafe.

Following their investigation, the FIA stewards opted to fine Ferrari rather than hand Hamilton an additional time penalty.

The incident had initially raised concerns that Hamilton could receive another sanction after already serving a five-second penalty for causing the collision that led to the retirement of his former Mercedes teammate George Russell.

However, in their verdict, the stewards confirmed that Hamilton would retain his fourth-place finish at Spa. Instead, Ferrari were handed a €30,000 fine, with €10,000 of that amount suspended for 12 months, provided the team does not commit a similar infringement during that period.