Lewis Hamilton explains viral clip of him jumping off moving bus in Bahrain - 'Had to go'

Lewis Hamilton has revealed just why he needed to leap off the driver parade bus in Bahrain early last weekend. All the attention in Bahrain was for the action on the track at the season-opener.

Mercedes were lacking the pace to compete with Red Bull and Ferrari, but a competitive race was still anticipated with the new regulations in place. And there was certainly some close racing throughout the race as both Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were locked in wheel-to-wheel action.

Hamilton and George Russell could do little more than watch from afar as the W13 failed to muster up a challenge at the front. Still, millions tuned in for the first race of the season. But some eagle-eyed viewers tuning in earlier on Sunday also caught wind of a random moment from Hamilton.

Before every race, drivers are taken around the track on a parade bus where they are interviewed and the spectators in the stands can hear what they have to say. Typically, the drivers would wait until the bus comes to a stop before getting off - but not the seven-time world champion.

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Hamilton was spotted making his way through the crowd of drivers towards the back of the bus before jumping over the moving vehicle. The short clip soon went viral on social media and Hamilton has now explained why he couldn't stay on the bus much longer.

"Still thinking about last weekend," Hamilton wrote on Instagram. "None of us were expecting a result like that, hard work and luck really pulled through in our favour.

"Definitely pumped for round 2, in the meantime enjoy these photos. Also, I had to hop off the parade because mans had to go.

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