Lewis Hamilton slams FIA president for ‘racial element’ in criticism that compared swearing drivers to rappers
LEWIS HAMILTON reignited his feud with Mohammed Ben Sulayem by saying there was a “racial element” to his comments comparing swearing drivers to rappers.
The FIA president has asked F1 to limit the amount of swearing, usually from drivers over team radio, on TV coverage of races.
Ben Sulayem said: “We have to differentiate between our sport – motorsport – and rap music. We’re not rappers, you know.
“They say the F-word how many times per minute? We are not on that. That’s them and we are [us].”
Ahead of this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, Hamilton said: “I don’t like how he’s expressed it.
“Saying ‘rappers’ is very stereotypical and if you think about it, most rappers are black. So really pointed it towards we’re not like them.
“So I think that was the wrong choice of words. There’s a racial element there.”
Hamilton did understand Ben Sulayem’s wider point, saying: “You forget that there are kids that are listening. So I agree in that sense.”
Max Verstappen also snapped back after he was cautioned over swearing in a press conference.
The Red Bull driver said his RB20 car was “f**ked” which led host Tom Clarkson to remind the world champion to watch his language.
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Verstappen said: “I sometimes swear, that’s true, but that will apply to everyone in this room.
“Insulting someone is something else.
“We are unlucky that it is all broadcast and people can then pick it up.
“The car is f***ed – can’t I say that? “How old are we, five or six years old? That is ridiculous.
“And even if children of that age watch this, when they get a bit older they will probably also use a swear word when they are with their friends.”
This is not the first time drivers and Ben Sulayem have locked horns, with his feud with Hamilton long-standing.
The seven-time world champion slammed new rules about wearing jewellery in his Mercedes cockpit in 2022.
Hamilton was forced to remove his nose stud ahead of the 2022 British Grand Prix.
He was then granted an FIA medical exemption to wear the piercings following “concerns about disfigurement” the following season.
Ben Sulayem also fined Hamilton £42,000 for failing to attend the FIA’s prize-giving gala in the days after his defeat to Verstappen in the 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The Brit supported Susie Wolff, the F1 Academy managing director, in her legal dispute against Ben Sulayem.
Wolff lodged a case against the FIA following its conflict of interest inquiry into her last year, which was dropped after two days.
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