“I Check Under My Toilet Seat”: Lewis Hamilton Confesses His Fear of Animals Whenever He Visits Australia

“I Check Under My Toilet Seat”: Lewis Hamilton Confesses His Fear of Animals Whenever He Visits Australia

Lewis Hamilton has made a name for himself being statistically the most successful F1 driver in the history of the sport. The seven-time world champion drives one of the fastest categories of cars on some of the most challenging and dangerous circuits in the world. As a result, most would expect him to be fearless. But by his own admission, when it comes to the wildlife of Australia, the Briton does tend to second guess his courage.

Speaking to the fans at the Australian GP, Hamilton revealed (as quoted on Australian GP’s official YouTube channel), “Australia, man, it’s crazy out here! You’ve got all the world’s dangerous animals. Every time I get here I check under my toilet seats. I check in my shoes. Even when I was putting my helmet on yesterday, I was looking inside!”

Hamilton‘s observations about Australia are mostly accurate. The country does indeed boast one of the most diverse groups of animals, insects, and reptiles. Whilst discussing his phobias when he visits Australia, Hamilton also revealed that during a recent surfing trip, one of his friends had a close encounter with a shark.

However, if the scares are kept aside, Australia’s Albert Park street circuit is one of the best venues for F1 fans to experience a Grand Prix. The 2024 Australian GP did not disappoint either as it featured one of the most interesting races in the recent past.

Ferrari emerged as biggest gainers after the 2024 Australian GP

The race weekend itself started on a promising note for the fans as Red Bull did not appear to be their dominant selves like in the past. Although Max Verstappen still clinched pole away from the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz, the race produced a surprising twist.

After Verstappen was forced to retire on lap 3 of the race due to a brake system malfunction, Sainz received the impetus and went on to clinch a sensational victory. Moreover, with Charles Leclerc finishing second, Ferrari clinched an outstanding 1-2.

Similarly to Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton also had a race to forget. Due to a power unit failure, the Briton ended up retiring from the race.

However, Mercedes’ troubles just did not end there as George Russell ended up crashing on the last lap of the Grand Prix while chasing Fernando Alonso for P6. Since both Hamilton and Russell registered a DNF, Mercedes failed to score any points.

Post Edited By: Vidit Dhawan
Lewis Hamilton

About the author

Anirban Aly Mandal

Anirban Aly Mandal is an F1 writer at The SportsRush, with over 1000 articles under his belt, Anirban's love for F1 started when he discovered a copy of F1 2014 on his computer. With over half a decade's worth of time spent religiously following the sport, he’s dived deep into the world of motorsports. However, Anirban's expertise goes beyond just writing - he has also written several academic papers focused on the domain of motorsports and the law. His passion for the sport is so immense that he aspires to work as a legal advisor in the most prestigious racing series in the world someday. When it comes to Formula 1, Anirban finds great pleasure in re-watching classic races and idolizes the likes of Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, and Sebastian Vettel. His top picks include Brazil '91, Silverstone '92, and Germany '19. Outside of the sport, Anirban is an avid sim racer, often found racing on titles like Assetto Corsa, F1 22, and Automobilista. Apart from his interests in gaming, Anirban has a keen interest in philosophy, literature and music.

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