Wednesday 22 February 2017 3:57 pm

“Outdated” Formula One has been left behind by other sports and needs to be made more entertaining, says Lewis Hamilton

Sports Editor

Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has called on Formula One’s new owners to drag the sport into the 21st century, warning “there is a lot of catching up to do”.

Liberty Media completed its $8bn (£6.4bn) takeover last month in a move that ousted long-time boss Bernie Ecclestone, whose regime was criticised for failing to embrace innovation, notably in digital and social media.

“I’m excited for the new owners and I hope they do something new. I really think they’re going to bring new blood, new ideas, new ways of engaging the fans in a new and unique way,” Hamilton told the BBC.

“F1 is a bit outdated in the sense that if you look at other sports they’re further ahead in the entertainment factor. F1 is catching up and I think there’s a lot of catching up to do.”

The Mercedes driver, 32, urged Liberty, which has appointed Chase Carey as F1’s chief executive, to consult motor racing fans over possible changes to make the sport more exciting.

“The first step would be to see what the fans feel they’re lacking, what they feel they would want more of,” said Hamilton.

“I think you’d get a good balance of opinions of people who have been to a grand prix. You would get a lot of opinions but, a bit like our government, it might go the wrong way.”

Hamilton is a regular social media user and his combined tally of almost 12m followers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram is more than 4m more than F1’s official accounts on the same platforms.

The English racer’s fondness for engaging with his digital audience attracted criticism last season, however, after he posted pictures on Snapchat while taking part in a press conference.

Mercedes are due to test their 2017 car at Silverstone on Thursday. The new season starts with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on 26 March.