FIA president says Lewis Hamilton and co. can express their “private personal agenda” on other platforms after imposing ban on political statements

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has made it clear that if Lewis Hamilton and other drivers want to express a personal message, they will need to do it on their own platform.

Hamilton has been one of the driving forces of social messaging ever since the "Black Lives Matter" movement gained steam during the pandemic. During that time, Mercedes changed its livery to an all-black one.

In the 2020 F1 season, many drivers, spearheaded by Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, took a knee before races. However, from the 2023 F1 season onwards, the FIA has passed a directive that will not allow drivers to use the F1 as a platform for any social or political messaging.

Delving deeper into that, Ben Sulayem explained why the decision was taken. He said:

“I am a big believer in the sport. We are concerned with building bridges. You can use sport for peace reasons and all of this. But one thing we don’t want is to have the FIA as a platform for private personal agenda. We will divert from the sport.”

He added:

“What does the driver do best? Driving. They are so good at it, and they make the business, they make the show, they are the stars. Nobody is stopping them.

“There are other platforms to express what they want. Everybody has this, and they are most welcome to go through the process of the FIA, to go through that.”

Ben Sulayem added that the FIA needed to be neutral and the sport needed to stay a sport. He said:

“I have my own personal things, OK, but it doesn’t mean I will use the FIA to do it. The FIA should be neutral, I believe, and we need the superstars in to make the sport. And they do such a great job when it comes to the competition that all of us enjoy.”

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The FIA vs Lewis Hamilton battle could take center stage in 2023

The FIA might have to brace itself as it is likely to face a lot of heat for their latest decision.

Lewis Hamilton has been at the forefront when it comes to spreading social messages within the sport. The driver's following is indisputable and he is clearly the biggest star in the F1 at the moment.

With the kind of fan following he has and the restrictive directive that the FIA has introduced, the two entities are on a collision path and things could heat up during the season.