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31/03/2008 19:53
Laon, France - Formula One star Lewis Hamilton was fined 578 euros ($914) by a court here on Monday for speeding.
The 23-year-old Briton, who finished runner-up in the world drivers' championship in his debut season last year, had already been banned for a month after being caught speeding at 196km/h in a Mercedes by police on a motorway near the northern town of Laon on December 16 last.
The speed limit on French motorways is 130km/h.
The McLaren driver had already paid a 600-euro fine in January.
The car which was impounded was collected later by a friend of the driver.
Hamilton did not attend the hearing but his lawyer Jean-Francois Veroux said that "for him (Hamilton) it's as if he had made a mistake during a Grand Prix because he is aware of his responsibility towards young people".
Veroux added that his client was also willing to participate in a road safety campaign.
"He admitted the offence immediately and was really very polite," a police spokesperson said at the time, adding that Hamilton had said in his defence that the motorway was "very clear" at the time.
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