‘Bigger fish to fry’: Hamilton welcomes jewellery reprieve before Monaco GP

Preparing for what is always a testing weekend on the streets of Monaco, Lewis Hamilton welcomed an FIA climbdown in a spat that is clearly becoming a tiresome distraction.

The threat of Hamilton missing the race on Sunday due to the stand-off over whether drivers can wear jewellery under their race suits was lifted temporarily on Fridayy, with the sport taking a moratorium on enforcing the rule to examine ways to come to an agreement.

The rule had been largely unenforced until this season when new race director Niels Wittich informed drivers he would be strictly applying the regulation for reasons of safety. He imposed a clampdown in Miami where checks were enforced to ensure compliance. Hamilton opposed the move, noting that he had piercings including a nose stud that could not be removed and that he had raced with jewellery all his career.

The seven-times world champion pointedly observed that the rule made little sense given that wedding rings and bracelets were permitted, and his stance was supported by other drivers. He was given a two-race exemption to allow him time to remove the jewellery but he made it clear he had no intention of backing down. The exemption ended before this weekend’s meeting in Monaco but has now been extended to cover this meeting, Azerbaijan and Canada and will conclude before the British Grand Prix on 3 July.

Hamilton welcomed the move on an issue he believed had already consumed unnecessary time. “The rule came in in 2005, we’ve all worn jewellery our whole careers in Formula One,” he said. “It’s not been a problem in the past and there’s no reason for it to be a problem necessarily now. It definitely is positive that we’re working with [the FIA] and I think they’re accommodating a little