Lewis Hamilton is going through the worst phase of his F1 career. The Briton has failed to win a GP since 2021 and doesn’t look to be breaking the unfortunate streak anytime soon. Many people started questioning the 38-year-old’s passion for the sport, especially during a prolonged window of his not signing a contract extension with Mercedes. Having signed a two-year deal, the 7-time world champion silenced many of his haters, and in his latest interview, the British driver clapped back at 3-time former world champ Jackie Stewart for his past comments.
A few days ago, The Sun quoted Stewart’s words about there being a “serious problem” with Hamilton’s motivation. He added that the 7-time world champion no longer has the hunger to win another championship, which has led to a major dip in his driving. However, Hamilton has now come out to deny the claims and provide his response to a legend of the sport.
Lewis Hamilton gives his response to Jackie Stewart
With the Singapore GP a week away, Hamilton flew back to his hometown of Stevenage to meet with the students who are a part of his Mission 44 project. While there, he also sat down with BBC for an interview, where the host addressed Stewart’s criticism of his British compatriot. Hamilton responded straightforwardly by calling the 71-year-old “short-minded” and unaware of things happening behind closed doors.
“There are people that are very short-minded, who make the comments that they do. Not knowing the work that’s being done in the background.”
He further added that when he retires, Hamilton will want to set a better example for the next generation of racing. Instead of being judgemental and shutting them down, Hamilton wants to be encouraging and would want them to know that it is okay to make mistakes.
It is not the first time Hamilton has called out the sport’s legends
In June last year, Nelson Piquet and Hamilton were in the thick of things after the retired driver used racist remarks in one of his videos when talking about the 38-year-old. As a result, Piquet was stripped of his honorary membership of the British Racing Drivers’ Club and was banned from the F1 paddock. While many drivers supported Hamilton, former F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone defended Piquet by saying the Mercedes driver should have brushed off the comments.
“Bernie, there is no equivalent between calling a black person the N-word and saying that you are undersized.”
ICYMI: Piers Morgan challenges Bernie Ecclestone after he defended Nelson Piquet using a racial slur against Lewis Hamilton.@piersmorgan | @LewisHamilton | @TalkTV pic.twitter.com/MnsQxglZVU
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) July 1, 2022
Subsequently, the Briton questioned why the F1 community was constantly paying attention to the “older voices” of the sport. He added that the new generation of drivers is trying to take the sport to the next level and increase its popularity among other nations.
However, if they continue to give a platform to the older voices, the sport’s growth will not be possible. He urged the authorities to take “real action” and focus on the bigger picture for the betterment of the sport.
