Lewis Hamilton’s penchant for going fast might have earned him acclaim, money and a Formula 1 championship in 2008, but it hasn’t earned him any love from Australian police. According to The Associated Press, Hamilton’s personal car was impounded by police on Friday at the entrance to the street course in Melbourne for driving too fast and aggressively.

According to police constable Scott Woodford, Hamilton’s car was impounded after he made a tire-skidding exit from Albert Park, site of this Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix. He won’t be eligible to retrieve his car until Monday.

“I was driving in an over-exuberant manner and, as a result, was stopped by the police,” Hamilton said in a statement. “What I did was silly, and I want to apologize for it.”

This isn’t the first incident Hamilton has had with street cars. Hamilton’s car was impounded in France in 2007 after he was caught speeding by police.

Related articles by Zemanta

• F1 Star Hamilton Has Car Towed By Aussie Cops (news.sky.com)
• Webber refutes talk of F1 retirement (cnn.com)
• Australian Grand Prix: I have no intention of retiring, says Red Bull’s Mark Webber (telegraph.co.uk)