FORMULA One champ Lewis Hamilton has been on a series of secret dates with Rihanna.
Lewis, 30, has cooled things off with model Kendall Jenner so he can give the singing star his full attention.
Last Saturday he and Rihanna, 27, dined at New York restaurant Da Silvano before moving on to 1 OAK nightclub.
They then went to her penthouse in the city to carry on partying into the early hours.
A source close to Rihanna said: “They’ve had a flirtation for years and have always fancied each other, but since May this year they’ve been talking a lot. Finally their schedules allowed them to spend a weekend in the same part of the world and they made the most of it.
“They are both really busy but Rihanna has asked him to come to Rock in Rio in September so he can see her perform and spend time together.”
And a source close to Lewis revealed: “He is a bit infatuated with her and thinks she is not only sexy but incredibly funny, although he knows she has a reputation as a heartbreaker.”
His seven-year on-off relationship with former X Factor judge Nicole Scherzinger, 37, ended in February following a series of rows over Christmas.
At the time Nicole said: “I’m devastated that it didn’t work out. It was the hardest decision we had to make, but we made it together.
“I love Lewis and know he loves me. We wish nothing but happiness and the very best for one another.”
The couple split up four times during their relationship.
In 2013, while apart, Lewis was said to have upset the former Pussycat Doll singer by partying with Rihanna in a Monaco casino. The DJ of the club said at the time: “They arrived separately but they were together.”
Two years earlier Rihanna was snapped with Lewis at the Canadian Grand Prix.
This year tongues started wagging at the A-list Met Gala in New York when a newly-single Lewis sat with Rihanna at her after-party table.
Sources close to Rihanna said that is when things between them started heating up again.
“They started talking on text and it became constant and very, very flirty.
“It was all about when they might be in the same town together and how they’d spend it.”
But Lewis soon started spending time with Keeping Up With The Kardashians star Kendall Jenner.
has become friends with 19-year-old Kendall’s half-sister Kim and her rapper husband Kanye West, even flying their family to the Glastonbury Festival on his personal jet.
But the source close to Lewis said: “Things have cooled off with Kendall but they’re still friendly.”
A rep for Lewis declined to comment. Rihanna’s spokeswoman did not respond to requests.
