Lewis Hamilton claims he has never had any deep conversations with Max Verstappen. And the only time the two drivers interacted was ahead of the 2020 opener in Austria.
The 2020 Austrian GP fell in the midst of a worldwide ‘Anti-Racism’ movement fueled by George Floyd’s death in the US. And Hamilton is the only black driver in the current F1 grid and the history of the sport spearheaded the drive.
F1 launched the ‘We Race As One’ initiative to fight racism with banners sharing the message to “End Racism.” Lewis was joined by the other drivers on the grid who stood in solidarity ahead of the start of the race.
Lewis took a knee, an act inspired by the protests by Black athletes in American Sports leagues. But the other drivers did not join one of which was Max Verstappen.
Lewis Hamilton tried to convince Max Verstappen to take the Knee
Lewis Hamilton was the face of F1’s action to combat Racism. The driver took the knee and raised a fist in a mark of protest. While Mercedes changed their Silver livery to Black.
The Briton tried to convince the other F1 drivers on the grid to take a knee alongside him. One of whom will be his future title rival, Max Verstappen.
Lewis said, “I went to him to talk about what Black Lives Matter meant and how much support it would mean. I tried to explain what it’s like and why we’re fighting. It obviously made no difference”
Max however declined the offer. He was one of the six drivers who did not take a knee. The others were, Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Daniil Kvyat, Antonio Giovinazzi and Kimi Raikkonen.
Verstappen released a statement regarding his action stating, “I am very committed to equality and the fight against racism. But I believe everyone has the right to express themself at a time and in a way that suits them.”
Max Verstappen’s soft stance on Nelson Piquet’s remarks
After 3-time World Champion Nelson Piquet’s racist comments on Lewis Hamilton surfaced, the F1 community condemned the actions of the Brazilian. But there wasn’t any stance taken by Max Verstappen who felt the issue was “blown out of proportion”..
Verstappen has been dating Piquet’s daughter Kelly. And the Dutchman did not release a statement supporting Hamilton saying the 7-time World Champion already has his respect.
Verstappen also did not shun the Brazilian former champion saying, “It’s not up to me to talk to my father-in-law. You’re not going to say, ‘hey man, that’s not correct’. I think he knows himself.”
He adds, “I don’t think he needs me to say what is right and what isn’t. He said it himself in his statement, he used the wrong word, so who am I to call him? I don’t think it will change anything.”
Max also felt that Piquet should not be banned from F1. He was joined by his team Red Bull who did not release a statement addressing the issue.
