Formula 1 has announced the elimination of the protest ceremonies for social rights and against racism that it carried out before each Grand Prix. The president of the competition, the Italian Stefano Domenicali , has explained that his intention is to make fewer “gestures” and opt for more effective and less cosmetic “actions”.
“We needed to make sure that what we did was important to show Formula 1’s intent on things that were really important to the world. I think now it’s about moving from gesture to action. Now the action is the focus on the diversity of our community, and this is the first step”, valued Domenicali .
For the past two seasons, Formula 1 has developed the ‘We Race As One’ program with the aim of increasing the diversity of the world’s leading motorsport competition. The best-known action of this initiative was this ceremony before each race in which many drivers knelt on the asphalt. Domenicali explained that they will continue to have the option to do so, but that the rite as such disappears.
“I think that the gesture has been an important gesture because we must respect everyone, as always. But now is the time to move on and take some other action,” the former Ferrari team boss reiterated to Sky Sports . Within these initiatives, a scholarship program for engineers from underrepresented groups in F1 stands out and will run until at least 2025.
In principle, Lewis Hamilton , who has been the biggest promoter within the grid of the ‘We Race As One’ initiative, is aware of the elimination of the ceremonies and supports Domenicali ‘s decision to opt for measures that have more effective power. , even if it is at the cost of losing effectiveness in television broadcasts.
