Lewis Hamilton clarifies comments after sparking controversy with F1 bosses
After causing a stir among F1 executives, Lewis Hamilton retracts his remarks.
In light of a potential new driver joining the grid, Lewis Hamilton has emphasized the need for more diversity in Formula 1.
The seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has once more emphasized the need for the sport to become one that is more inclusive and diverse, saying that change must come “from the top down.”.
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Hamilton has consistently pushed for structural changes in the sport that would encourage a larger participation of people from underrepresented groups.
Aiming to address the underrepresentation of black people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields and UK motorsport, the British driver founded the Hamilton Commission in 2019.
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Even though Hamilton is still the only black driver to have participated in an F1 race, recent achievements, like Jessica Hawkins becoming the first woman to test an F1 car in more than five years, show that progress is being made.
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Hamilton’s recent remarks emphasize the importance of change coming from team managers and other sport leaders.
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The day after the Qatar Grand Prix, he made the following statement to the media: “I feel like we need to amend the criteria actually, and make sure that there’s an opportunity for real impact, really making sure that if there is a new team, they have to be diverse.
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“They might need to open up a door for a female driver to enter. And it needs to be diverse from the top down.
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Currently, all of the owners are white.
Additionally, there is a serious lack of diversity starting at the top.
It needs to stop being exclusively male.
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After the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) formally approved Andretti Global’s application to join the sport, Hamilton’s remarks were sparked by the potential addition of an 11th team to the F1 grid.
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Since 2012, the Michael Andretti-led Andretti Global team has participated in Formula E, IndyCar, IMSA, and Extreme E racing series.
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Aspiring to join the F1 grid, the team has changed its name to Andretti Global.
Drivers, teams, and fans have reacted differently to this development.
By saying, “It wasn’t that I support Andretti,” Hamilton clarified his position on the subject.
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“I believe that having the possibility of more cars on the grid is exciting from the driver’s perspective.
We have over 2,000 people on our team, so the notion of an additional team was then raised.
That is a tremendous number of jobs.
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But we need to ensure that the strict criteria are actually followed.
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