Lewis Hamilton has cast doubt over Formula One’s claims that the sport brings about positive change in some of the repressive regimes where it races. In the buildup to the opening race of the new season in Bahrain on Sunday the seven-time champion insisted F1 should do more to make a difference to improve conditions in states highly criticised for their human rights records such as Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this week a group of 20 cross-party MPs in concert with the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (Bird) wrote to F1 and the governing body, the FIA, calling for an independent inquiry into the sport’s activities in countries with questionable human rights records and expressing concern over complicity in sportswashing.
F1 has been racing in Bahrain since 2004 and this week the sport’s CEO, Stefano Domenicali, told the Guardian they were committed to improving conditions by engaging with the authorities in countries such as Bahrain and that the sport was doing more to improve the situation than it would by not racing there.
“F1 is much stronger to do what we are doing because we are there, to be there to monitor what they are doing,” he said. “I truly believe in keeping the pressure in the right way, because what I have learned is that if you want to be respected by people who think differently from you, the best way is not to shout at them.”
Human rights groups including Bird have dismissed the argument, in the case specifically of Bahrain arguing that repression has only worsened since F1 began competing there. They have alleged that “forced disappearances, extrajudicial killing and torture” have continued despite F1’s presence in the kingdom for almost 20 years.
Hamilton, who has been outspoken in his defence of human rights, did not accept F1’s claim to be making a difference and said he felt sympathy for the people of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
“I can’t say whether or not I know if it has got worse but I am not sure it has got better while we have been coming all these years,” he said.
“For me it’s only in these latter years that I have started understanding more and more of the challenges for the people here in Bahrain and also in Saudi as it was my first time there last year and I read about some of the troubles.”
Formula One has a stated commitment to upholding human rights in the countries it visits and Domenicali has stressed its use of independent auditors to assess whether it is meeting those commitments. However, Lord Scriven, the Liberal Democrat peer and vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on human rights and democracy in the Gulf, said they were not convinced this was sufficient and were requesting that F1 take tangible steps.
“We are asking them to do things to improve the way the sport operates around human rights,” he said.
“They are not extreme or radical things, they are issues that we would expect any sporting organisation with any moral leadership at the heart of how motor sport is governed and operates.”
The second grand prix of the season is in Saudi Arabia and there are later races in Abu Dhabi and Qatar. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are understood to pay approximately £42m to host their meetings. Domenicali argued that F1 was not simply following the money but was committed to engaging with the authorities for positive change. But Hamilton also questioned whether the commitment he has made towards respecting human rights was widely shared across the sport.
“I have always felt we have a responsibility and if the sport is going to go to these countries we are duty bound to raise awareness and try to leave a positive impact on these places,” he said. “That view has not always been shared amongst the sport, whether it’s teams or people in high positions, but more needs to be done, without doubt.”
The new season opens on Sunday with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen looking a strong favourite to defend his title. Hamilton was circumspect about his chances, with his Mercedes team expecting to have to develop the car aggressively to unlock its potential and catch Red Bull and Ferrari. “I knew from the moment I drove the car where we were and the challenges we would be facing,” he said at the Sakhir circuit on the eve of the opening practice session of 2023 on Friday.
