Mercedes F1 Team Robbed at Gunpoint Outside Brazilian GP Circuit
FIA officials and members of the Williams team also had run-ins with criminals this race weekend.
Sau Paulo, Brazil—Several members of the Mercedes F1 crew were robbed at gunpoint on Friday night, leading to obvious safety concerns from the team and sport as a whole. One of the first to speak out on the matter was four-time world champion Lewis Hamilton who took to Twitter after the incident. The Briton called to the FIA for better event safety protocols and told how this happens far too often, especially in such a prestigious series.
As Hamilton explained, this is not the first time that an event like this has occurred at Interlagos. There have been several instances in the past when Formula 1 teams have encountered trouble outside the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace circuit, and that bolsters the case for improved security even more according to the 32-year-old driver.
Mercedes team officials revealed that there were no injuries, but a list of valuables was stolen.
The Williams F1 crew and FIA members both ran into problems as well this weekend, though the Mercedes case was more serious with threats and deadly weapons involved.
Jenson Button faced a similar issue in 2010, putting everyone on notice but not stopping the robberies. Additionally, the 2012 Brazilian GP was held in the middle of a drug war that brought violence to the streets of Sau Paulo right outside of the race venue.
