S Poddar
Lewis Hamilton is opposed to the statements by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem over cracking a whip on the instances of the swear words among Formula 1 drivers. According to Ben Sulayem, drivers need to display more professionalism while communicating over team radio and avoid such profanity language; according to him, they are “not rappers.”
Seven-time world champion Hamilton has come out criticizing the manner in which Ben Sulayem voiced his opinion. Though Hamilton supports a cut in swear words, he feels that the choice of words made by the FIA head carried “a racial element attached to them.”
Ben Sulayem’s comments, where he refers to the swearing to be somewhat of rappers, seems to Hamilton to stereotype a situation. “There are two sides to this,” said Hamilton when speaking to the media, including RacingNews365. “I wasn’t as mature a young lad; it was angry moments, and you’re saying stuff sometimes. And there are many people, including kids, listening in too.”.
Hamilton believed that younger drivers may still be not in the habits of a professional and, therefore, penalties might still act as a deterrent from excessive expletive use. On the flip side, however, he was also critical of the choice of words by Ben Sulayem as he mentioned, “Referring to rappers was very stereotypical. If most rappers are black, it seems to imply a separation of ‘us’ versus ‘them.’ The choice of words was not ideal and had a racial undertone.”. Despite this, I agree that language does need to be moderated.”
Emotion further amplified by Hamilton: “It is in human nature to do so. there is a time and a place to do it, and F1 is such a public platform that emotions need to be controlled when expressed. Being one of the stars of Mercedes, he feels an immense responsibility and control over his responses because of the influence that he commands over such a large number, and due to the dedication of his team.
It’s important to have a little emotion, but we can’t be robots,” he said. “I have more than 2000 people working to make me succeed, and their dedication is as big a part of my success as anything else. To that extent, I should try to take my frustration out of the public view and take it out in the proper way. It’s about knowing what my team is sacrificing and making the best use of the position.
Hamilton’s response typifies the complexity surrounding this balancing of self-expression with professional expectations, and serves to underscore the broader relevance of the language and attitudes in sports.
