Lewis Hamilton delivered an impassioned speech at the Australian Grand Prix on Thursday, pleading with Africans to “take back” the continent.
Hamilton is the first black driver in F1 and is of African descent. During his recent summer vacation, he traveled to many African countries, including Kenya, Rwanda and Benin.
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The seven-time world champion begins his 20th consecutive season and his second with Ferrari after also backing F1 racing in Africa, the sport’s only habitable continent that does not host a grand prix. South Africa, Rwanda and Morocco have all announced interest in recent years.
When asked which African city Hamilton would like to watch an F1 race in, the 41-year-old responded non-stop for three minutes, talking about his love for the continent and his hope for change in the future.
“I’ve been fortunate…I’ve been to 10 countries in Africa now,” he said. “I still have a lot to see. I’ve been behind the scenes for the last six, maybe seven years trying to get a big prize…sitting with stakeholders asking the question, ‘Why aren’t we in Africa? Every other continent has one, why not Africa?’
“I know they work really hard. I think they’ve been to a lot of different countries. My favorite country: I love Kenya. I don’t think we’re going to have a Grand Prix in Kenya, but Rwanda in particular is fantastic. I feel like I could live in both places.
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“South Africa is fantastic. I think these are great places for us to potentially go. I don’t want to leave the sport without having a Grand Prix there, without racing there, so I’m chasing them: ‘When?!’
“They’re setting certain dates… I might run out of time, so I’m going to be here for a while until that happens because that would be amazing considering I’m half African.
Lewis Hamilton gave impassioned speech in support of Africa on Thursday (Getty Images)
“My roots come from a few different places over there, like Togo and Benin. Last year I went to Benin, Senegal and Nigeria. That’s something I’m very, very proud of. I’m really proud of that part of the world.”
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Hamilton later said he believed Africa could be “the most powerful place in the world”, adding: “I don’t like how the rest of the world has so much of Africa [Africa] And got a lot out of it, but no one talks about it.
“I really hope that the rulers of those different countries can come together and unite and take back Africa. That’s what I want to see. Take Africa back from the French, take back Africa from the Spanish, take back Africa from the Portuguese and the British. That’s very important for the future of the continent.
“They have all the resources to be the greatest and most powerful place in the world, and that’s probably why they’re so controlled.”
Hamilton has endured a difficult first year at Ferrari in which he failed to finish on the podium and will be hoping to bounce back this season. The season opener takes place in Melbourne on Sunday (4am GMT).
