Lewis Hamilton Is New FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem's First Headache

Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been president of the FIA for less than 24 hours, and he's already in the middle of a controversy.

And that controversy is Lewis Hamilton, and specifically Hamilton's refusal to attend the annual FIA Prize Giving gala in Paris on Thursday night. Formula 1 rules call for the top three drivers in the F1 championship to attend the gala, which features a lot of trophies, red carpet moments speeches.

New F1 champion Max Verstappen and third-place finisher in the championship Valtteri Bottas were there to pick up their hardware. Hamilton, however, was nowhere to be seen, undoubtedly still upset at how the F1 Abu Grand Prix and the 2021 championship season ended this past Sunday.

New FIA president Ben Sulayem was asked by the BBC if Hamilton would face any penalties for skipping the ceremony.

"If there is any breach, there is no forgiveness in this," Ben Sulayem said. "Forgiveness is always there. But rules are rules."

Ben Sulayem stopped short, however, of setting groundwork for any fine or penalty.