Hamilton commented at the first Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (2021) that he felt “uncomfortable” in that country because of its human rights record.
After the second edition, held two weeks ago, Lewis Hamilton was asked if his vision had changed, and he declared: “I really don’t know what to say. My position is still the same as when I spoke here last year.”
In 2022, the fate of the Saudi race hung in the balance following a missile attack on an oil facility near the Jeddah circuit, bringing F1 drivers face-to-face with government heads as they decided whether to continue. or not with the weekend.
And at those meetings, the Saudi Minister of Sports, His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal , reportedly offered Hamilton a chance to sit down and chat about his concerns about competing there.
Speaking about the seven-time champion’s discomfort with Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdulaziz said: “I saw the comments Lewis made, and that he had problems with some things from Saudi Arabia.”
“I told him openly and frankly that he can talk to me. Let’s sit down, discuss what his problems are and understand where we are, because in many of these things, you read a lot about Saudi Arabia but you don’t see what the details are.”
Prince Abdulaziz said Saudi Arabia wanted to be as open as possible in addressing concerns expressed by foreigners, which is one of the reasons he wants the spotlight to be directed at the country through major sporting events such as the Formula 1.
“We could have said that we don’t want a headache, that the international community condemns us as much as it wants and that there be controversy, but that nobody interferes,” he said. “But we didn’t.”
“We are here for an open discussion and that is what I said, with the FIA and F1. We must sit down together and understand the situation, because we are here together.”
“That’s why I spoke openly with the drivers, and I spoke directly with Lewis, telling him that if he wants to discuss these issues, he’s more than welcome to discuss it with me because he was saying that he couldn’t find anyone to discuss it with.
“So I’m willing to sit down with him. I think a lot of these issues are fueled because there’s no communication and there’s no understanding of what’s going on.”
“Today the world is small in terms of communication, but we really live in different parts of the world with different cultures and different mindsets. We’re open to discussion, we’re open to all of that and we’re happy to do it.”
Prince Abdulaziz has also revealed that he spoke privately with Sebastian Vettel in 2021, following the German’s criticism of Saudi Arabia ahead of the race weekend.
However, upon his arrival in the country, Vettel tried to better understand the reality in the place and was the host of a day of karting for local women.
“I spoke to Seb last year and said, ‘Listen, thanks for doing that,'” Prince Abdulaziz explained. “For you to understand more, don’t talk to us, talk to people. And ultimately, that’s the message we give to everyone.”
“I’m not saying we’re perfect. I’m not saying we’re the best in the world. We have our problems, yes. But we’re solving them and moving forward at the rate we can.”
“Sometimes we move very fast, but sometimes some things change much more slowly. These are very complicated issues that we all have to deal with. And we do it for ourselves, we do it because we believe that we have to prosper in this area. And if we do it, then everyone else will go more to where we are”.
“It is our duty to ensure that the future is prosperous for our children, and for all who want to live in the kingdom and in the area.”
