In a recent interview with GP Week, Sahara Force India driver Adrian Sutil said he lost all respect for Lewis Hamilton following an incident in a Shanghai nightclub in 2011.
Sutil was involved in an incident with Genii’s Eric Lux in a Shanghai nightclub following Hamilton's victory in the Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton who was present was a key witness in their affair.
Adrian Sutil had hoped Hamilton would act as a witness, but the Briton never appeared.
The German Formula 1 driver was ultimately convicted of causing grievous bodily harm, incurring an 18-month suspended sentence and a 200,000 euro fine.
Sutil and Hamilton had been friends since their Formula 3 days, but the incident dramatically altered their relationship.
After a year off, Sutil was back in F1 this season and Hamilton suggested in Monaco that he wanted "to make sure we get things right".
Asked by GP Week whether he and Hamilton had yet to discuss their situation, Adrian Sutil said: "No, no. For some reason he never contacted me again.”
“He always said he is my friend but he wishes to suddenly disappear, he changed his number. I saw him in the paddock and he always said, 'Yeah, we can sit down and talk about it', but he never arrived,” Sutil explained.
“These kinds of people I don't really respect. I respect him as a sportsman, but in private he's not on my level and I don't need to waste time with those people. I'm happy I realised what kind of a person he is,” he added.
Sutil was involved in an incident with Genii’s Eric Lux in a Shanghai nightclub following Hamilton's victory in the Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton who was present was a key witness in their affair.
Adrian Sutil had hoped Hamilton would act as a witness, but the Briton never appeared.
The German Formula 1 driver was ultimately convicted of causing grievous bodily harm, incurring an 18-month suspended sentence and a 200,000 euro fine.
Sutil and Hamilton had been friends since their Formula 3 days, but the incident dramatically altered their relationship.
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| Lewis Hamilton and Adrian Sutil in Japan, in 2008. (Photo: WRi2) |
After a year off, Sutil was back in F1 this season and Hamilton suggested in Monaco that he wanted "to make sure we get things right".
Asked by GP Week whether he and Hamilton had yet to discuss their situation, Adrian Sutil said: "No, no. For some reason he never contacted me again.”
“He always said he is my friend but he wishes to suddenly disappear, he changed his number. I saw him in the paddock and he always said, 'Yeah, we can sit down and talk about it', but he never arrived,” Sutil explained.
“These kinds of people I don't really respect. I respect him as a sportsman, but in private he's not on my level and I don't need to waste time with those people. I'm happy I realised what kind of a person he is,” he added.