Sir Lewis Hamilton has been an inspiration for many young and aspiring F1 drivers from all over the world. It is because what he has achieved under his circumstances has been remarkable. He is the only driver of color. Hence, against all odds, he has been part of F1 for over 15 years. Moreover, he became the most successful driver of all time. Currently, the Mercedes star has jointly the most number of titles with Michael Schumacher.
Both great racers have won the driver’s championship for a record seven times. Like Schumacher, Hamilton is very popular even outside the F1 Motorsport world. Generally, fans criticize the FIA, the governing body, for penalizing Hamilton for no reason whatsoever. However, after the last Qatar Grand Prix, top F1 pundits criticized FIA for thinking twice before penalizing Lewis Hamilton.
F1 Pundits Criticize FIA For “Revisiting The Incident” Of Hamilton’s Crash In The Qatar Grand Prix
In fact, what happened was that Hamilton was part of a clash with his teammate in the opening lap of the Qatar GP. Later, FIA fined Lewis Hamilton 50,000 euros. Recently, though, the governing body posted a statement saying that they would reinvestigate the clash because of Hamilton’s “Role Model Status.” Subsequently, F1 pundits like Alex Brundle and Will Buxton severely questioned FIA’s use of the phrase “Role Model Status.” As far as Will Buxton, the rule should be equal for every driver, no matter who he is. Buxton recalled a 2012 crash that involved Lewis Hamilton yet again.
But the governing body fined Romain Grosjean for the crash in the Belgian GP in 2012 that took out several drivers off the race. They banned the French-Swiss driver and made him pay a fine. Moreover, Brundle suggested that FIA was clumsy when using the phrase “Role Model Status.” But FIA stands firm in their statement, saying Lewis Hamilton apologized after the crash to the stewards. And the fact is that Hamilton admitted that it was a serious safety breach on his part while trying to cross his teammate. But FIA’s big concern is what the role model status and actions of Hamilton will have an impression on the minds of young racers.
Why Lewis Hamilton Is Such A Big Role Model In F1?
Moreover, Toto Wolff likes to say that Lewis Hamilton has transcended the game forever. Very few drivers had Hamilton’s level of iconic stature in Formula One ever. He has launched several brands in the fashion and food business. Last year, Lewis Hamilton launched his film production house, and they are already working on an F1 movie starring Brad Pitt. Arguably, fans can say that even though Max Verstappen is the current triple-time champion, he is still in no way near the iconic status of Lewis Hamilton.
But this great F1 icon is having a terrible time in the grid at present. Lewis Hamilton has been winless since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 2021. It has been too long a gap for a racer who has won 103 races in his career. To date, no other driver has crossed even 100 races yet. Where Hamilton should have been winning more races to live up to his role model status, he is getting part of more controversies in recent times.