Hulkenberg and Hamilton call halo ‘horrible’

Hamilton does not like the Halo

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Hulkenberg have slammed the prototype 'halo' device that Ferrari tested at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Thursday as the "worst looking mod" in Formula 1 history.

Kimi Raikkonen ran the design, which wraps around the cockpit in the form of three struts, to assess installation and driver visibility, ahead of its potential introduction for 2017.

Hulkenberg says the halo head protection system "looks horrible" and does not believe it should be introduced in Formula 1.

Hulkenberg, when asked said: "Don't do it. It sends the wrong message. F1 is very safe at the moment.

"It looks horrible, I don't like it and it's just one of these little personal things that I wouldn't like to see it."

"You can't sterilize the sport. There needs to be an element of danger – I think in a way that's sexy and attractive and it's also what Formula 1 needs.

"Safety standards in F1 are pretty high and very good, I'd be happy to accept those risks and keep running as we are. Personally I don't like how it looks and for me it feels like trying to eliminate every little bit of risk."

Williams driver Felipe Massa said the design is "not so nice" but agrees with the concept for safety reasons.

"Safety is the most important thing and I totally agree with the halo or the closed cockpits or whatever – I agree with this change. But it doesn't look very nice. We'll see how it's going to be. If it's good for the safety, it's fine."