Lewis Hamilton 'sad and disappointed' by Bernie Ecclestone's 'ignorant and uneducated' comments

Lewis Hamilton

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Hamilton 'sad and disappointed' by Ecclestone's 'ignorant and uneducated' comments

Hamilton says it now makes sense to him why the sport has done little to increase diversity across his career

Sam Hall

Friday 26 June 2020 23:50 Updated: 11:14

Lewis Hamilton has heavily criticised controversial comments made by former Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

During an interview with CNN, 89-year-old Ecclestone said, "In lots of cases, black people are more racist than what white people are."

Ecclestone was then offered the chance to clarify his comments and why he held this opinion, but was unable to provide any evidence to back the claim.

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F1 has since distanced itself from the remarks, in particular after this week launching the #WeRaceAsOne initiative, which in part aims to combat inequality. The sport also clarified that Ecclestone no longer held an honorary position as chairman emeritus.

Hamilton has notably been outspoken in his campaign for equality, while he joined a Black Lives Matter protest in London recently.

With regard to Ecclestone's viewpoint, the six-time F1 champion says he now understands why change has taken so long to arrive.

"So sad and disappointing to read these comments," wrote Hamilton on social media.

"Bernie is out of the sport and [is of] a different generation, but this is exactly what is wrong - ignorant and uneducated comments which show us how far we as a society need to go before real equality can happen.

"It makes complete sense to me now that nothing was said or done to make our sport more diverse or to address the racial abuse I received throughout my career.

"If someone who has run the sport for decades has such a lack of understanding of the deep-rooted issues we as black people deal with every day, how can we expect all the people who work under him to understand. It starts at the top.

"Now, the time has come for change. I will not stop pushing to create an inclusive future for our sport, with equal opportunity for all. To create a world that provides equal opportunity for minorities.

"I will continue to use my voice to represent those that don't have one, and to speak for those who are under-represented to provide an opportunity to have a chance in our sport."

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