Grosjean issues apology to Hamilton, but accused of being a racist on social media
Grosjean issues apology to Hamilton, but accused of being a racist on social media
Romain Grosjean has apologised to Lewis Hamilton for the mixed messaging that emerged following the anti-racism stance taken ahead of the last grand prix in Hungary.
Grosjean, however, has also revealed he has been the subject of abuse on social media and accusations of him being a racist following Hamilton's comments as the six-time Formula 1 champion had pointed an accusing finger at the Haas driver following the race at the Hungaroring.
Hamilton stated that Grosjean was "one of them that thinks it [staging a protest] was done once and that’s all we need to do". It led to Grosjean and Hamilton holding a 45-minute phone call on the Tuesday following the race.
Grosjean explained to Hamilton that as a director of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, he was speaking on behalf of those drivers who felt the stance taken at the season-opening race in Austria was enough.
Grosjean said: "It was a really good chat about many things, Formula One in general, but obviously the subject was 'End racism'.
"I explained to Lewis that maybe I did it wrong, maybe I did it right. I don't know. It felt right at the time that we [him and Sebastian Vettel] are two directors in the GPDA and we had, I would say, seven or eight drivers that were not happy to carry on the ceremony, as it was done, in race one in Austria.
"I said to Lewis that maybe I did it wrong, but I felt that as one of the directors, okay, Sebastian was pushing in the direction of carrying on with 'End racism', which is the right approach, [but] I was speaking for the drivers that were not happy to carry on, to express their voice as a director of the GPDA.
"Now thinking about it, it was probably the wrong thing to do, and Lewis put some good arguments, I did, too. But I think it was the wrong thing to do.
"It was a good chat with Lewis. I said sorry, that maybe I did it the wrong way but I felt I had to do what I had to do at the time because at the GPDA we work on a majority vote system, and I felt that as one of the directors listening to the guys not happy to carry on, then I wasn't doing my duty.
"But also he mentioned that as one of the directors they are listening to you, and that was his point, and I think he was right in that aspect. It was a really good phone call."
The outcome was that Grosjean, along with GPDA chairman Alexander Wurz, spoke with F1 CEO Chase Carey and FIA president Jean Todt via a conference call to clarify what position should be taken going forward.
"It's hard for us as drivers to organise things over an event because we've many things to look at," added Grosjean.
"So we wanted more guidance from Liberty, a clear procedure as we had for Austria, race one, and I think that's going to happen and be more clear for all of us on what to do."
The flipside for Grosjean is that Hamilton's remarks led to him distressingly being accused as a racist.
"I said I wasn't very happy that on my social media I had a lot of things about racism, that I'm racist or whatever, which is absolutely wrong," said Grosjean. "I don't think you will find anyone in the world [who would say] that I did something wrong in that aspect.
'So I wasn't very happy about being treated like that. I was one of the first to push through and support that we take the knee.
"I'm still really hopeful that one day we will get 20 drivers to take the knee on the grid, that it will happen at one point.
"We need to keep pushing the guys, tell them that it's a sportsman's gesture and a way to support a cause on something that shouldn't exist."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Haas announce Hulkenberg EXIT as F1 star's new team confirmed
- 3 hours ago
F1 champion claims Drive to Survive success was 'very lucky'
- 48 minutes ago
F1 franchise welcomes return of INCREDIBLE feature
- 1 hour ago
F1 News Today: Red Bull star set to QUIT team as F1 driver role CONFIRMED for 2025
- 2 hours ago
F1 team set to axe BOTH star drivers
- 2 hours ago
Red Bull to lose F1 MVP as true cost of Horner saga hits
- Today 09:57
Related news
Incredible statistic puts Verstappen AHEAD of Hamilton record
Fierce rival calls Hamilton F1's GOAT in surprise admission
Hamilton sends strong message over Gaza deaths
Former F1 chief hits out at Hamilton 'EXCUSES'
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860