"Have you ever had the active thought that you are white?": When Toto Wolff revealed how Lewis Hamilton's question led to a profound thought

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff once opened up the question Lewis Hamilton asked him, which sent him into a deep thought. This, as Wolff described, was a moment of realization as he thought of the entire racing Paddock from Hamilton's perspective.

Lewis Hamilton overcame several hardships during his early racing career. Not only did his father work multiple jobs to afford the dream of his son racing in Formula 1, but Hamilton was also subject to harsh criticism throughout his early career. He has admitted multiple times that he faced racial abuse for a large part of his career, which made it a difficult ordeal for him.

He became the first, and still the only, black driver to ever race in F1 after debuting with McLaren in the 2007 season. While he broke multiple records and has won seven World Championships in his career so far, the racism that he faced early in his career has still not healed completely.

His former boss, Toto Wolff, once revealed that Hamilton asked him if he ever thought about being "white."

"He asked me once, ‘Have you ever had the active thought that you are white?’ And I replied, ‘I have never thought about it.’ He said, ‘I think about it [the fact I’m black] every day,'" Toto Wolff said (via BBC Sport).

Toto Wolff added that while he never thought about it, he imagined how difficult it must be for Lewis Hamilton to be present in this field.

"That was a year or two ago, and it triggered a profound reflection within me, because we as a majority white people in European countries, you never think about it," he added.

"Imagine you enter the paddock and you are the only white person and how difficult that would be. I guess it would make you think about your skin colour every day. And if you add abuse and racism to the whole equation, it becomes unbearable. This is what he and many others around the world are facing every day.".

But Lewis Hamilton has proven all critics wrong. After winning his first F1 World Championship with McLaren in the 2008 season, he went on to dominate with Mercedes and won six more. He is ranked among the sport's greatest drivers of all time and is immensely respected around the Paddock.

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Why Lewis Hamilton needs to push to put Ferrari in a competitive position?

Lewis Hamilton ended his legendary stint with Mercedes to move to Ferrari this season. While the move was hyped, he has failed to deliver competitive results with the team so far. Apart from his Sprint victory in China, P4 is the best that Hamilton has driven in a main race.

The issues have been linked with the car's uncompetitive pace, inconsistent handling, and Hamilton's adaptability, considering he had been driving with Mercedes for the past decade.

However, the team still sits in second place in the Constructors' Championship, owing to the multiple podiums that Charles Leclerc has scored. But Hamilton would now need to step up and start finishing within the top three.

Mercedes has been closing up on Ferrari to clinch the second position, and with Lewis Hamilton falling out of the top five, it becomes an easy job for the Brackley-based outfit to achieve.

Improvement has been expected from Hamilton in the final 10 races of the season. At the same time, Ferrari is also expected to start winning races, as they have so far failed to do so this season. These factors, if achieved, would award the team the second position in the Constructors' Championship.