Lewis Hamilton was unhurt when he came off a superbike he was testing at the Jerez circuit in Spain yesterday.
La Gazzetta dello Sport revealed Hamilton tested a Yamaha YZF-R1 of the type raced by the Cresent Racing-run Yamaha Racing Team in the Superbike World Championship.Hamilton came off the bike at turn five, the fast left-hander which leads to the long back straight at the former home of the Spanish Grand Prix. The bike was damaged but Hamilton resumed testing soon afterwards. His bike was largely unbranded except for Yamaha logos and Hamilton’s number 44 stickers.
The five-times Formula 1 world champion has indicated in the past he would like to try his hand at motorbike racing. Earlier this year Hamilton said the Moto GP was the only motorsport he could see himself racing in outside F1.
“I would want to do Moto GP if I could,” he said. “Moto GP is a little bit hardcore.
“That’s the only other racing series I really watch and I watch it religiously so wherever I am in the world I’m watching that online. I’m just fascinated by these out-and-out riders who are literally riding by the seat of their pants. I think it’s very cool.”
Hamilton is an ambassador or motorcycle brand MV Agusta, which produces the officially-licensed F4 LH 44 bike.
F1 world champion @LewisHamilton has been riding at Jerez this week. He’s had a couple of R1s provided by @crescentmoto and had been riding with the @PataYamahaWSBK guys. Spotted these while there for the test! pic.twitter.com/l2Tn9sRNAm
— Simon Patterson (@denkmit) December 2, 2018
Sick couple of days in Jerez 🏍💨🔥 @alexlowes22 @mickeyvdmark @PataYamahaWSBK @MonsterEnergy pic.twitter.com/1uIwgmKx7r
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) December 2, 2018
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Image: Simon Patterson via Twitter
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MrBoerns (@mrboerns)
2nd December 2018, 15:47
Doing a shoey and doing a shuey. Know the difference, kids!
Darryn Smith (@darryn)
2nd December 2018, 18:55
As long as he doesn’t take up skiing.
ferrox glideh (@ferrox-glideh)
2nd December 2018, 21:14
And wear your Shoei!
Arrows98 (@arrows98)
2nd December 2018, 17:20
why don’t Hamilton take on a safer hobby, like Montoya used to have with his “tennis matches” ;)
PT (@pt)
3rd December 2018, 3:17
Unlike Montoya, Hamilton has 5 titles to his name already. So he’d need something else to motivate him.
Big Joe
3rd December 2018, 23:43
@arrows98 @pt
depends on what their contracts allow. i.e you had Montoya lying about riding Motocross when he fell off.
It seems Lewis is doing this not long after signing a new contract. So not easy to work out why.
glue
2nd December 2018, 18:03
Turn 5 is a right-hander
Martin
2nd December 2018, 18:15
Probably why he crashed then
mog
2nd December 2018, 19:02
Absolute gold reply!
drop sochi
3rd December 2018, 0:24
???
Chuck Lantz
2nd December 2018, 19:06
GREAT way to start my day!! Still smiling.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
2nd December 2018, 21:27
Sir, the internet is yours.
stefano (@alfa145)
2nd December 2018, 21:58
Don’t need my abs training anymore for today, thanks
Todfod (@todfod)
3rd December 2018, 5:30
Take a bow Martin!
edd
3rd December 2018, 5:52
epic reply Martin, thanks
Martin
3rd December 2018, 17:05
Thanks everyone, I’m here all week!
jsw11984 (@jarred-walmsley)
3rd December 2018, 19:07
Surely has to be COD?
Blazzz (@blazzz)
2nd December 2018, 22:04
I’m a Hamilton fan but I think this is just stupid of Lewis. I’m a casual Moto GP fan and most times riders sustain injuries, they are out for a couple of months. F1 testing is in +- 3 months. Someone close to Lewis needs to knock some sense into him. As cold as this may sound, you only have to look at Kubica to see how things can easily go wrong or, Kimi during his rallying spell (albeit he got away with it and he was doing it full time).
Aldoid
2nd December 2018, 23:34
I have to agree with you there. I’d wait until after I retired before trying anything crazy in or on anything else with a motor if I were in Lewis’ shoes. Like he himself admits, motorcycle racing at the top level is all kinds of hardcore. One bad high side & that’s potentially next season over before it’s even begun.
PT (@pt)
3rd December 2018, 3:14
After 5 World Championships, he wouldn’t care.
Big Joe
3rd December 2018, 23:27
@pt
Why 5? Lewis was out on the roads on a bike which is just as dangerous, he then went on to get beat by Rosberg and may have been stuck on 3 Championships. He’s obviously trying things and taking opportunities whilst he’s reasonably young. 34 at the start of next season. I gave up riding fast bikes at 26.
MacLeod (@macleod)
3rd December 2018, 8:10
wrong example, Michel S. did also a race on a bike and he crashed too with a 3 month injury to deal with.
But i agree these things he shouldn’t do way to dangerous for Mercedes. Even Max isn’t allow todo ski-ing anymore for the same reasons.
Ivan Vinitskyy (@ivan-vinitskyy)
3rd December 2018, 8:54
@blazzz I can’t see anyone besides Hamilton who can really judge the risks vs reward in doing this. Or do you think Hamilton can’t do the maths it’s only 3 months until F1 is back? or that he doesn’t know average recovery times when crashing on a bike? This is clearly important for him to do, and for someone who made millions and has 5 championships don’t you think he wants to live a little? Sure he has a contract and Mercedes might insist he doesn’t take risks but I’m glad they let him do what he wants. Maybe Max can’t afford this, he spent 19 years getting to F1 and nothing to show for it yet. Lewis can.
Blazzz (@blazzz)
3rd December 2018, 11:33
@ivan-vinitskyy
Of course anyone can judge that. Anyone can learn from history of F1 vs Moto GP to compare and contrast injuries and deaths sustained over the decades. And anyone who does that will come to an informed decision that Moto GP/bikes are more dangerous than F1 cars.
Lol patronising much?
I also don’t agree with your sentiments of “I’ve got 5 championships, so if I never compete again, who cares” because Lewis, despite his success is still determined to outdo himself which he has said repeatedly. He won’t be doing that if he sustains injuries doing stuff like this. Then, even if he makes the surgery and recovery in time, he might not be the same driver that he is today. Sport is littered with examples of athletes who could never quite perform to their previous heights after injuries.
Look, Hamilton can live as he wants. Obviously. It’s his life and his career. I am also entitled to an opinion and to criticise what I believe to be an unnecessary risk.
Shimks (@shimks)
5th December 2018, 14:21
+1 @ivan-vinitskyy!
Alex Brown (@splittimes)
3rd December 2018, 12:12
I marshal bike trackdays and BSB tests and if we have, say, 15 fallers in a day, one or two might pick up minor injuries (dislocated fingers, sprains). Serious injuries are rare, maybe 5 to 10 this year (complex fractures, vertebrae damage, internal injuries). Racing is riskier, obviously, but in the hundreds of thousands of laps run this year at the circuit the only medical issue I’ve been worried about was a BSB rider’s oral herpes.
Shimks (@shimks)
5th December 2018, 14:20
Brilliant reply, @splittimes!
Big Joe
3rd December 2018, 23:48
@blazzz
Everyone you mentioned had negotiated the privilege of doing extra Motorsports. So it obviously means a lot to them. With perhaps the exception of Kimi racing Snow mobiles where he entered races under a false name.
krxx
2nd December 2018, 23:57
Any lap times?
Stephen Crowsen (@drycrust)
3rd December 2018, 2:55
Maybe Ocon will get that seat at Mercedes sooner than he expects.
digitalrurouni
3rd December 2018, 3:09
lol why is it other people’s concern what Lewis does outside of F1? I think it’s brilliant that he’s riding around on 2 wheels! Makes me like him even more! Go Lewis!!!
PT (@pt)
3rd December 2018, 3:13
Glad that Lewis is fine. But this is so refreshing to see. I used to think that Hamilton was not interested in racing anything else, and that once F1 is over he wouldn’t want to joining any other motorsport, except NASCAR which he wanted to try out as a one-off. Somehow I’d missed him professing his live for Moto GP. We’re living in really exciting times indeed. While Fernando Alonso is looking to emulate Graham Hill in pursuing the triple or even exceed Hill and Mario Andretti in winning races in as many top line championships as possible, we have Lewis Hamilton looking to follow in the footsteps of Sir John Surtees and win championships on four wheels and two! I haven’t been much of a fan of Lewis, but if he does things like this I would become his biggest fan! MoviStar Yamaha, Rossi is getting old so you might consider…
MrBoerns (@mrboerns)
3rd December 2018, 6:14
@pt yeah no, Graham Hill was a bit of a Gentleman while Fernando is an egostatic cheat
Big Joe
3rd December 2018, 23:35
@mrboerns
Your comment about Alonso is a bit p@thetic in the context of these drivers always wanting more. This is a sport where Graham Hill’s son’s impeccable behaviour contributed to him losing to the biggest cheat F1 has seen, a cheat coincidentally using the same engineers that went on to run Alonso.
Alonso still races Karts given the chance, nothing to do with ego.
bob (@riptide)
3rd December 2018, 9:30
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFQ2EA9NNtI
Hamilton and Crutchlow earlier this year
Pjotr (@pietkoster)
3rd December 2018, 10:02
Little bit careless of Ham. MotoGP is a dangerous sport these bikes are really powerfull and fast. Just stay in that Mercedes, maybe ask for an airbag to make it safer. Without kidding, hats off that he dares to ride one of these monster bikes.
Dave
3rd December 2018, 20:05
I love how “fans” of the sport take it upon themselves to dictate with stern authority what the drivers should do with their time and talents.
“He should stay at MacLaren. He should dress in a way that doesn’t offend our sensibilities. He shouldn’t wear so much jewelry. He should let his father start on as his manager. He shouldn’t play music. He shouldn’t jet around to his fashion shows. He should wear a skirt on the podium. He shouldn’t ride fast bikes on the track. ”
Do what you want, Lewis. It’s your life and these people have nothing to do with it.
Dave
3rd December 2018, 20:07
Ha, *shirt*.
But he can wear a skirt for all I care!
Big Joe
3rd December 2018, 23:38
Not least Ron Dennis who wanted him to keep his hair smart and short and keep his shirt tucked in. Lewis didn’t get his hair transplant until he left McLaren.