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Lewis Hamilton Stays With Mercedes in 2021, Greater Diversity a Hot Topic

The world of Formula 1 is, for as long as we can remember, the playground of Mercedes-AMG. For the past seven years, the German team has been at the top of the series, winning both the drivers’ and the constructors’ championships. And the eighth such combo seems to be in the making.
Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolf 1 photo
Photo: Mercedes-AMG
Instrumental to this achievement was of course Lewis Hamilton. The British driver won the title six times since 2014 for Mercedes (and another one for McLaren in 2008), scoring 74 race wins and setting the bar so high it will probably be a long time before another talented driver comes along to pass it, if ever.

On Monday, February 8, Mercedes-AMG announced it signed a new contract for the 2021 season with Hamilton. It would be their ninth together, sealed through a contract that has some interesting clauses.

As per the deal between the two parties, Mercedes-AMG will have to set up a joint charitable foundation together with Hamilton in the hopes of “supporting greater diversity and inclusion in all its forms in motorsport.” No other details were provided.

The decision comes after last year Mercedes-AMG fielded black Silver Arrows in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement that reignited in the U.S. over the past summer. The carmaker later painted the AMG GT R Formula 1 safety car in the colors of the rainbow, part of the racing series’ WeRaceAsOne campaign.

On his end, in the fall of 2020, Hamilton was seen wearing a T-shirt calling for the arrest of the “cops who killed Breonna Taylor.” His idea sparked heated debate within Formula 1 teams and even the FIA as to how far (or how close) people involved with Formula 1 can go when showing their views on hot topics.

“I am excited to be heading into my ninth season with my Mercedes teammates,” Hamilton said in a statement. “I’m equally determined to continue the journey we started to make motorsport more diverse for future generations and I am grateful that Mercedes has been extremely supportive of my call to address this issue.”
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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