Lewis Hamilton has claimed that he will be minimising his appearances at news conferences due to what he perceives to be a lack of respect from the media.

The Formula 1 world champion was criticised by the press for playing with his mobile phone and posting Snapchat images during a news conference on Thursday.

Hamilton, 31, said that it was intended as "a super light-hearted thing" and what was written about him in response was "more disrespectful".

As a result, he said on Saturday: "Unfortunately the decision I will take unfortunately affects those who have been super-supportive, so that is why I am saying with the utmost respect.

"But I don't really plan on sitting here many more times for these kinds of things. So my apologies and I hope you guys enjoy the rest of your weekend."

Hamilton, who was beaten into second place by Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg in qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, then walked out of the news conference.