Lewis Hamilton Thursday expressed his fear concerning the security of this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah, one yr after a missile barrage alarmingly near the observe.
Yemeni rebels focused an oil refinery close to the Jeddah Street Circuit final yr and the drivers have been grilled by reporters on Thursday about their state of nerves.
Last yr’s Grand Prix was punctuated by conferences involving drivers and officers from Formula One and the game’s ruling physique, the International Motoring Federation (FIA).
The drivers stated they’d been advised there was a ceasefire between Saudi Arabia and Yemeni rebels now.
Most drivers stated Formula One had made progress in enhancing safety however the wider specter of Saudi Arabia’s human rights file remained a difficulty that was largely left apart.
“I can’t speak for the other 19 drivers, but in general I think we are happy and have no concerns with the changes put in place since last time for this year,” stated George Russell of Mercedes.
“There were a lot of lessons to be learned and F1 has really stepped up – and that’s not just here in Saudi but at all the Grands Prix.”
Others together with Haas’s Kevin Magnussen, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and McLaren’s Lando Norris expressed complete belief within the sport’s administration – a sense not shared by Mercedes’s different drivers: Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.
When requested about his emotions on returning to race in Saudi Arabia, he stated: “Not much really to add – but all the opposite to everything they said,” referring to Stroll and Perez who had spoken earlier than him at a news convention.
“Hopefully, everyone has a safe weekend and hopefully everyone gets back safe afterward. That’s as much as we can do, right?”
Speaking about final yr, Magnussen stated: “None of us enjoyed it. But, I think it’s a different situation now, with a different protocol and a ceasefire between the two parties that were involved and that gives some confidence.”
Perez stated he was “happy to be back.”
Hamilton raised one other situation – Saudi Arabia’s rights file.
“I still feel that, as a sport going to places with human rights issues, such as this one, the sport is duty-bound to raise awareness and try to leave a positive impact.”
Human rights group Reprieve has accused F1 of “never seriously engaging with human rights and the way the sport is used to distract attention from abuses by some of the world’s most repressive regimes.”
Reprieve director Maya Foa stated there had been not less than 13 executions carried out in Saudi Arabia within the final two weeks.
Formula One responded in an announcement that it had made its “position on human rights and other issues clear to all our partners and host countries who commit to respect human rights in the way their events are hosted and delivered.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com
