- British driver wears helmet decorated with a rainbow
- Alonso first in practice ahead of Verstappen and Pérez
Lewis Hamilton made a statement of his own as the new season began with practice in Bahrain, wearing a helmet decorated with a rainbow in support of LGBTQ+ rights in the region. The British driver had made clear on Thursday his belief that F1 was responsible to make a positive impact and raise awareness of issues in the countries it visits.
The helmet did not breach the FIA’s rules on drivers making political statements but Hamilton’s fracas with the governing body over the wearing of jewellery rumbled into a new season. This year he has been granted a medical exemption to wear his nose piercing. The FIA received a report from Mercedes’ team doctor and concurred with the “concerns about disfigurement with frequent attempts at removal of the device”.