Amidst a worldwide push for more women's representation in sports, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton welcomed the news of F1’s plans to introduce a women’s-only support series in 2023. Announced just before the season-ender Abu Dhabi GP, the series will be run by F2 and F3 teams, with CEO Bruno Michel leading the show.
As of now, the format is as follows: seven rounds of racing with three races each for a total of 21 races with further scope for testing as well. Furthermore, it is also expected to have a single Grand Prix as part of the F1 support package - but this has not been confirmed yet.
In a statement released by the sport, they said:
"Our aim is to better enable aspiring female talent to fulfil their potential by giving them the same level of preparation as their male counterparts at the same age"
While this is not pitched as a replacement for the current women-centric 'W Series', the F1 Academy is specifically aimed at women in their teens: 15 drivers will compete, spread across five teams. The academy is set to make the path to F1 easier with drivers progressing from the academy to F3, F2, and then the pinnacle of them all - F1.
When asked about the prospect, Lewis Hamilton seemed receptive to the concept, but still feels more needs to be done. He said:
"If there was really research into why there's such a lack of women coming through and having the opportunity, you'd probably have to go back down to karting and find that there are no equal karts. We've got to create more inclusive environments and [solve] inclusivity issues all the way down into karting. We can then have a bigger pipeline of young women [coming through]."
Lewis Hamilton also mentioned that he only came across a couple of girls during his entire karting tenure from ages 8 to 16. Meanwhile, Hamilton has always been vocal in his push for increased diversity and mobility within motorsport and all walks of life. He formed the Hamilton Commission, alongside The Royal Academy of Engineering, which presented an opportunity to simultaneously address the underrepresentation of black people in UK motorsport, as well as the STEM sector.
The prospect of the F1 Academy was also welcomed and congratulated by Lewis' former teammate and two-time world champion Fernando Alonso as well.
"It’s not forever", but retirement "not now", says Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton has seemingly won it all, including clinching the F1 World Championship seven times. He, however, accepts that his career is not forever, but has no plans of retiring soon. In an interview given to the New York Times, the Brit continues:
"It’s not forever, but something inside is telling me, ‘you’re not done yet. You’ve got to keep pushing. You’ve got more to do, more to achieve”
Hamilton also revealed that while his father and long-time raceside companion, Anthony Hamilton, and brother Nicolas very much encourage him to keep on racing, his mother and sister are a little less enthusiastic when it comes to his racing life.
“My dad and my brother, they’re like, ‘yeah, keep racing forever,’ because they’re racers. For my mum and my sister, I can definitely sense they want me to do whatever I want to do."
The seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton, like his friend and long-time rival Sebastian Vettel, is as energetic and enigmatic off-track as he is on-track. He has a range of interests outside of F1, including businesses, his charitable work, and most recently acting and film production.
