Lewis Hamilton admits he gets an “empty feeling” at the thought of Formula 1 races taking place without fans later this year.
Currently, F1 owners Liberty Media are trying to put together a 15-18 race schedule starting with double-headers in Austria and Britain in July.
However, though there is hope the final races could see fans, at least in Europe all Grands Prix are expected to happen behind closed doors.
“It gave me a really empty feeling because the fans really make that race,” Hamilton said specifically on Silverstone in a Mercedes YouTube video.
“Around the world, all the races we go to, the more fans there, the more atmosphere you have. That’s why you have places like Silverstone and Monza, so it’s going to be very empty.
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“I don’t know how exciting it’s going to be for people watching it on TV but it’s going to be better than nothing, but for us it’s going to be like a test day, probably even worse than a test day in a sense,” the Briton suggested.
“On a test day there’s not a huge amount of people in Barcelona come to watch but there are still some, where here you’re going to have nobody in the crowd and you’re just going to see empty seats as you’re driving down.”
The silver lining for Hamilton though is while the atmosphere at the circuit is set to be very different, at least drivers and fans alike can look forward to F1 returning.
“What’s great is I’m getting messages from people around the world who are struggling during this period because they are not getting to watch sports and it just shows how significant sport is in people’s lives,” the six-time champion continued.
“It brings us all together and it’s so exciting and captivating.
“Racing is racing and I don’t think any of us have had enough time to really, truly unleash the potential of our cars so I’m excited to get back in. I really, really do miss it.
“It’s almost a blessing on one side because it gives you even more appreciation for the things that you love and the things that you do.
“This has given me more energy and inspiration and determination to keep delivering and keep working with this great team, so I’m excited for the future.”