Lewis Hamilton had some choice words to say about some choice words that were delivered by FIA President Mohammad Ben Sulayem.
Earlier this week, Ben Sulayem came under fire as he tried to convince drivers to stop swearing on the radio and try to end broadcasting by FOM of such words on the live feed.
The FIA President said that F1 drivers should not be compared to rappers in the amount of times that they swear, and that any bad language removes some integrity from the sport.
“We have to differentiate between our sport – motorsport – and rap music,” he told Motorsport.com.
“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].”
While Hamilton understood the point that Ben Sulayem was trying to make, he felt that there was a racial undertone that could have been avoided. Rap, a genre with predominantly Black artists, was the key differentiator that Ben Sulayem mentioned, and Hamilton felt that the use of rap music as something to avoid was not the right call.
“I don’t like how he expressed it. Saying that rappers is very stereotypical and if you think about it, most rappers are black and that really kind of points it towards, when it says: ‘We are not like them’. So I think those are the wrong choice of words. There is a racial element there.”
But, besides how the attempt was messaged, Hamilton agreed with Ben Sulayem, saying that kids could be influenced by how their role models speak.
When Hamilton burst on to the scene in 2007 at the age of 22 with McLaren, radio messages were rarely played out throughout a Grand Prix.
“When I was 22, I did not think of it as much and it was more about your emotions just firing and saying whatever comes to mind and forgetting however many people are listening and kids listening, and all those kinds of things.
“So I agree in that sense. You know, you listen to some of the other drivers and they have not got it yet, so at some stage they probably will.
“I am sure if you put penalties for it, people will stop it and maybe that’s…I don’t know whether that’s needed but I definitely think there is a bit too much of it [swearing].”
The 7-time World Champion explained that it’s important to remember how many people are working for him, and it’s key to channel that aggression in another way.
“For me, the way I control it, there is over 2,000 people working towards me having this position and being where I am.
“Obviously I’ve got a lot of followers of all ages, but it’s not about me. And even though I’m having this experience on track, what I do and say affects all those people who are sacrificing time with their families and giving everything for me to have this privileged position and opportunity.
“I think it is just understanding that and putting the aggression somewhere else. That’s what I try and do.”
