Mario Andretti on Lewis Hamilton’s public calls for the FIA to increase racial diversity within the sport:
"I respect Lewis very much, but at the same time, why become militant to some degree? He was never done wrong, he was always accepted in the best possible way, earned the respect of the entire planet. I think, again, some of the objectives that they seem to have, to me, are just overblown and that’s the way I feel. And I think it creates potential issues among all of us that don’t need to be there, that’s all there’s to it."
Lewis Hamilton's response:
“This is disappointing but unfortunately a reality that some of the older generation who still have a voice today cannot get out of their own way and acknowledge there is a problem. Again, this is plain ignorance but that will not stop me from continuing to push for change. It is never too late to learn and I hope that this man who I’ve always had respect for can take the time to educate himself.”
The difference between Lewis Hamilton and Mario Andretti?
Mario Andretti had his home reallocated to Yugoslavia after WW2, bounced around refugee camps for seven years in Italy, family came to the US with $125, did his teen racing on the sly with money and a car he and his brother bought and fixed themselves, only man to succeed in all aspects of racing that were available in his era, and still tells people his twin brother Aldo was better.
Lewis Hamilton was raised by a white mother until he was 12, then went to live with his father as a teen. His father took multiple jobs so Hamilton could race cars he couldn't fix. Hamilton then fired his father in 2010. Hamilton has been on top of the F1 heap for the last four years, will tell you about it, and is now championing a cause he did nothing at all for when it would have cost him time or effort.
