Lewis Hamilton suggested to boycott F1 amidst growing ‘sportwashing’ fears

Lewis Hamilton has been advised to boycott F1 racing in contentious Middle-East regions like Bahrain where human rights violation is a major issue. The Mercedes driver has been a major advocate of equality and inclusion in F1.

As reported by SportsPro, vice chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Democracy and Human Rights in the Gulf Lord Scriven said on Wednesday (March 1):

"Lewis and others would be correct to say that, unless F1 and the FIA put in place a framework which is in line with the United Nations’ guiding principle on business and human rights, that he and other drivers would feel uncomfortable about racing. And unless that framework is put in place, they would seek not to race."

He added:

“They could increase pressure, both in terms of highlighting the topic but also getting the dinosaurs of managers and administrators of their sport to actually put in place the correct framework so there is a systematic legal approach to how F1 and the FIA decide where to race.”

F1 president Stefano Domenicalli had talked about the same to Martin Brundle and assured that the sport keeps an eye on these things. He said:

"We do really care about this issue and we have also in our countries very clear articles that if we see something that is not going in the right direction, we have immediately the benefit of stopping that relationship. We have independent auditors following that."

Lewis Hamilton does find himself in a peculiar situation in F1

Lewis Hamilton does find himself in a peculiar situation at the moment. The Mercedes driver has been a beacon of positive social messages ever since the BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement.

However, there is a very hard balancing act that every F1 driver has to deal with as there is a growing influence of the Middle Eastern races on the F1 calendar.

The title sponsor last season Aramco is a Saudi Arabian public undertaking. F1's association with the company was questioned by prominent politicians from Canada like Dan Crenshaw last season as well (in retaliation to Sebastian Vettel speaking out against the sand dunes in Canada).

Lewis Hamilton is in the same boat at the moment. The driver has taken a stand by wearing LGBTQ+ colors during races in the Middle East, however, it's tough for a potential title contender to skip races and compromise his title campaign.

In all of this, Lewis Hamilton does walk a very tightrope and it does get tough to sometimes be as vocal with your stand as some people would want you to be.