Formula 1 pre-season testing: Lewis Hamilton calls for 'non-biased' stewards

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton called for Formula 1 to ensure race officials were «non-biased» as pre-season testing began on Wednesday.

The Mercedes driver, who set the fifth fastest time on day one in Barcelona, said it was «super-essential» for stewards to «have no bias».

He was speaking as he returned to the track just over two months after losing the title in contentious circumstances.

Hamilton also called for there to be «more women in the stewards' room».

F1's governing body, the FIA, has set up a new race-management structure after race director Michael Masi failed to apply the rules correctly in the title-deciding final race.

Masi's actions were central in the sequence of events that led to Hamilton, who had dominated the race before a late safety-car period, losing the lead and the title to Red Bull's Max Verstappen on the final racing lap after a restart in Abu Dhabi.

Masi has been removed as race director and replaced by two people who will rotate through the role — Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich. A beefed-up support structure has also been introduced, including an F1 version of football's VAR.

At each race, the F1 stewards' panel features a former driver, to assist the three other stewards.

Hamilton said: «Race drivers are sometimes very, very good friends with certain individuals. Some travel with certain individuals and tend to take a more keen liking to some of them.

»So just people who have no bias is super-essential when it comes to making decisions."

Hamilton also said he wanted to see «more women in the stewards' room».

«Last year there were maybe one or two. It would be awesome to have a male and female as the two race directors. That's a great way of promoting diversity.»

An FIA spokesperson said: