Mercedes should ban Hamilton’s dog – Watson

Mercedes should ban Lewis Hamilton’s dog from the paddock, according to former F1 driver John Watson.

While the 2008 world champion insists he is enjoying his new freedoms after quitting McLaren, driver-turned-pundit Watson is making the link between Hamilton’s lifestyle and his current struggles versus teammate Nico Rosberg.

“There is no place for a dog in the F1 paddock,” 67-year-old Watson told the Daily Express.

“For one thing, it is not fair on the animal.  It (also) shows that Mercedes are bending over too far to please Lewis.  There is absolutely no way McLaren would have allowed it.

“Lewis has to decide if he wants to be an F1 driver or a hip-hop star.

“He went to Mercedes with the reputation of being the man who would get the job done.  But it is just not happening for him at the minute and he needs to start working out why,” he added.

On the other side of the coin, however, Monaco winner Rosberg’s top form is winning praise up and down the paddock.

“For me, the way Nico has Lewis under control is the surprise of the season,” Manfred Zimmermann, who is Adrian Sutil’s manager, told Germany’s Auto Bild.

“It also shows that Michael Schumacher was not so bad in his last three years,” he added.

© RIF | GMM