McLaren CEO Zak Brown believes the FIA is doing the right thing by limiting activism on the drivers’ part.
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have been outspoken in recent years around a range of world issues, including those of inequality, social justice and the environment.
The ‘We Race As One’ campaign was launched in 2020 after the death of George Floyd, with widespread protests occurring as a result.
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The initiative saw some of the drivers take the knee before each race – inspired by the actions of former NFL player Colin Kaepernick in 2016 – while others chose to stand, and they wore t-shirts condemning racism during the show of solidarity.
On the podium at the Tuscan Grand Prix two years ago, Hamilton wore a t-shirt calling for the arrest of the police officers who killed Breonna Taylor at her home in Louiseville. In the wake of the seven-time champion’s statement, unsanctioned apparel was banned from podium ceremonies. Four current and former officers have since been charged with Taylor’s death.
Vettel was reprimanded for wearing a rainbow shirt with a ‘Same Love’ embodiment on it during the anthem at the Hungarian Grand Prix last season, in protest at the country’s anti-LGBT laws.
Unperturbed, both drivers have continued to use their platform to raise awareness for several causes close to their hearts.
F1’s deals with Qatar and Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality can be punishable by death, has attracted no shortage of backlash since their arrival to the calendar.
There was further criticism of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix earlier this year when missile attacks took place a matter of miles from the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
Recently, the FIA tweaked its regulations to prohibit activism from drivers, but they can still make some statements with the permission of the governing body.
The move has not gone down well with everyone, but Brown offers the viewpoint that demonstrating beliefs during a race weekend is not necessarily a “healthy” thing for the drivers to be doing.
“It’s tricky, right? Because some of the topics are really good, some are controversial, some are polarising,” he told ESPN.
“I think in general we want to be a sport that is doing good. We just need to find a balance there and not have every start of a race being a new political agenda for someone.
“I don’t think that’s healthy as it can detract from what everyone has tuned in to, which is they want to watch a grand prix.”
The American is pleased that there is still room for a degree of public expression from the drivers within the confines of the paddock.
“I’m glad the door is open for drivers and teams to talk to the FIA if there’s an issue they want to discuss. It wasn’t a ‘You can’t do it.’ It was ‘You can’t do it without our permission.’ So at least the door is open,” explained Brown.
“Everyone is allowed freedom of speech. It did get out of control at times with so much messaging going on … does it detract from the focus of the sport?
“These drivers can do this stuff in their own time, so I think it is within Formula One and the FIA’s right to say here’s the code of conduct we expect for you to follow during a grand prix weekend.
“You’re free to do whatever you want to do Monday through to Friday, so to speak, but obviously it’s at a grand prix weekend the drivers have the most cameras on them.”
The recent World Cup in Qatar was greeted with its own share of anger due to the deaths and alleged abhorrent treatment of migrant workers, as well as the country’s general human rights record.
Teams were barred from wearing ‘One Love’ armbands, and all displays of the rainbow flag were strictly clamped down upon.
The controversy off the pitch, to Brown’s mind, might have contributed to the recent alterations made by the FIA.
“I’m not sure if something triggered it, I don’t know if it’s coming out of the World Cup and it being a big topic there,” he reasoned.
“Politics is tricky by nature. That’s what they’re probably, at a macro level, trying to avoid is let’s not have Formula 1 become a political hotbed for various topics. But it is damned if you do, damned if you don’t, on some of these topics.
“I think that’s what we’re trying to avoid, let’s not turn Formula One into a political sport. Let’s just go racing and be respectful of where we’re racing.
“There’s not a one-size-fits-all in this world for political parties or political agendas, so I think there’s a good way that every team, driver, can carry their values in a way that’s noncontroversial.
“It’s becoming a hot topic in all these sports. In NFL it was taking a knee, that started there. You’ve got the armbands in Qatar. I think those things can start to deviate away from sport, and that’s where we need to find the right balance.”
