15 Dec 2008

Man vs Machine contest called off

10:27 am on 15 December 2008

The eagerly-awaited "man v machine" challenge between triple Olympic cycling gold medallist Chris Hoy and Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton was cancelled because of fears over the safety of the Wembley track.

Hamilton was to race in McLaren's new road car against Hoy on an adapted version of the track bike he used to win his three golds in Beijing.

However, yesterday's relentless rain and subsequent oil spills caused problems for the temporary track laid inside Wembley Stadium and, despite efforts to stabilise the surface, the race was called off earlier today.