Lewis Hamilton calls for 'non-biased stewards' as he hints at favouritism towards rivals

Lewis Hamilton has demanded that Formula 1 bosses us "non-biased stewards" at races this season.

The Briton's request was a hint the he believes some of his rivals get more favourable treatment from officials due to friendships.

Hamilton's relationship with F1 officials has endured a difficult time of late, as he continues to hold a grudge over losing out on the 2021 title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after some controversial decisions made by race director Michael Masi.

The Australian has now been removed from the role, but the Mercedes racer has still said that the trust he had in race bosses has been eroded and will take time to build back up again.

"We need to make sure we get non-biased stewards," Hamilton told reporters in Barcelona ahead of the first day of pre-season testing.

"Race drivers, some are very, very good friends with certain individuals, some travel with certain individuals and tend to take more of a keen liking to some of them.

"I think people who have no bias are super central when it comes to making decisions."

However, Hamilton's claim that drivers travel to and from some race venues with stewards was questioned by Red Bull chief Christian Horner.

"I don't think there is an intended bias, I'm not aware of any stewards travelling with drivers to races," he said.

"We have a new president that is looking to bolster the structure and to bring in the equivalent of VAR which is something that certainly the top teams have available to them.

"I certainly don't think there was any bias from stewards during the last seasons."

And Hamilton's boss at Mercedes, Toto Wolff, has also declared that he "doesn't think there is a conscious bias", but called for "professionalism in the stewards room".

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