A mechanic outside McLaren's garage.
The McLaren Formula One team, where Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris are driving, has announced its withdrawal from the Formula One Australian Grand Prix due to a positive test for coronavirus by a member of the team.
“The decision has been made out of a duty to protect not only McLaren employees and partners, but all teams and fans,” the British squad argued in a statement posted via their official Twitter profile, in the indicating that McLaren CEO Zak Brown and team principal Andreas Seidl have already informed the Formula One organization and the International Federation of Motorsports.
After learning of McLaren's decision, Formula 1 confirmed that in the last few hours it had “coordinated with the authorities to decide the next steps”. The Liberty Media statement reiterated that the “priority” remained the “safety” of fans, teams and staff. Thus, there is no official cancellation at Albert Park despite the loss of the Woking team.
However, last Thursday, the general manager of F1, Ross Brown, already warned of a possibility like the one that has been confirmed by McLaren. “If a team is prevented from entering a country, we cannot celebrate that grand prize, because it would be unfair,” said the Briton regarding restrictions that could affect Ferrari, Alfa Romeo or Alpha Tauri, the Italian teams.
This morning in Melbourne Lewis Hamilton had been “very, very surprised” at the decision by the FIA and Liberty Media to go ahead with the Australian GP. “It is great that we have races, but for me it is surprising that we are all sitting in this room,” revealed the world champion, in the company of Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and Nicholas Latifi. “It is shocking, but money is king,” said the leader of Mercedes.
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