Former Alpine team principal, Otmar Szafnauer, recently caused a stir online after suggesting Lewis Hamilton deliberately times his arrival at the track to ensure photographers are there to capture his outfits.
Szafnauer contrasted Hamilton’s approach with Max Verstappen, who he said is “always the first in”, while describing some of Lewis’ paddock outfits as “ridiculous”.
But is that actually what happens?
Simply, no.
Of the 44 track days in 2026 so far, Lewis has only worn fashionable gear on 13 occasions. On some of those 13 days, he even went out of his way to avoid the media and awaiting photographers. Of course there are occasions where Lewis does want to be photographed, but so far this season, that would only have been about 5 or 6 days.
Szafnauer’s comments about Max always being the first driver to arrive at the track are also incorrect. Typically speaking, Max is a mid to late arrival – there are plenty of drivers who arrive before Max, including Lewis Hamilton. In fact, driver arrival times vary considerably depending on the day, their schedules, and what they have planned at the circuit.
Kym details the arrival times for both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton over a number of races in this reel.
Despite what Otmar Szafnauer may be saying, take it from us – Lewis Hamilton does not time his paddock arrivals to get the most attention, and Max Verstappen is not always the first driver to arrive.
