Lewis Hamilton is not just a 7-time Formula One world champion. He is also a medium for change in a sport that is otherwise considered reserved for the privileged. Hamilton has never shied away from sharing his story of struggle. He has once again spoken about how he had to mend himself to fit into Formula One.

Lewis Hamilton was one win away from being the GOAT in F1 in the 2021 season. The controversial final race of the season in Abu Dhabi robbed him of his eighth world drivers’ championship. It would have broken anybody else, given how things panned out. Even Hamilton had to go through a journey of self-discovery to get to terms with reality.

Lewis Hamilton on gatekeeping in Formula 1

Hamilton recently got candid on Sky Sports about how he had to “shape” himself to get into F1. He also opened up about his trip to Africa and finding out the origins of his last name.

Speaking on gatekeeping in F1, he said, “I spoke many years ago about feeling like I have to squeeze into a different shape to fit in. There’s one shape that can get into F1 and if you’re not that shape, then you’re not welcome. So you kind of squeeze yourself into that just so you can get through, and then when you get in you can slowly become yourself, and that’s what I did.”

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Speaking on being the first and only black driver in F1, Hamilton said that he had to speak differently to fit in. Hamilton said that he constantly faced pressure from himself to be different.

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He talked about how facing racial discrimination during childhood was one reason to take a trip to Africa. He said that the trip was also about trying to find his place in the world.

Hamilton on the origins of his last name

Another reason that Hamilton said was the reason for visiting Africa was to discover his family’s heritage. He said, “…where did we get the Hamilton name? Where were we originally from? Where did the slaves come over on the ships from to the Caribbean?”

Revealing the origins of his last name, Hamilton said that there was a slave owner in Scotland named Robert Hamilton who had a plantation. He had around 150 slaves, and at some stage, the slaves took his last name. On the origins of ‘Davidson’ in his name, Hamilton said that there was another slave owner whose second name was Davidson. He said that his grandfather ended up being called Davidson-Hamilton.

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Before revealing the origins of his last name, Lewis said that he didn’t want to reveal too much. Is that a hint about a documentary on his trip to Africa?