Hamilton: Testing has been far tougher than we expected

LEWIS HAMILTON is hoping this year’s Australian Grand Prix weekend will be a far quieter affair for him personally than has been the case in the recent past.

In 2009, in his first race as world champion following his stunning success just a few months previously, the McLaren ace was caught in a web of deceit.

After finishing third, Hamilton was ultimately excluded from the classification after lying to stewards in a post-race investigation into an incident involving Jarno Trulli, then with Toyota.