When Lewis Hamilton joined McLaren in 2007, he was the only black driver on the grid. 16 years later, he still is the only black driver on the grid. But that hasn’t stopped the Briton from raising his concerns about the same. In fact, the 7X champ has brought about a change. Just days after Lewis Hamilton’s praise, the IndyCar prodigy opens up about Lewis Hamilton’s $25 million initiative that helped him break stereotypes and pursue his dreams.

Myles Rowe recently became the 2023 USF Pro 2000 champion. He became the first African-American driver to win an open-wheel racing title. Lewis Hamilton took a moment to congratulate the prodigy by sharing a story on Instagram. Hamilton has always been active and spoken up about diversification of the motorsports grid. He even launched Mission 44, a charitable foundation worth $25 million that helps young people from underserved communities.

Myles Rowe now came out to thank Lewis Hamilton for being a role model and for motivating many like him and showing them that it is possible. He explained how he watched Hamilton while growing up and that inspired him to do the same thing. 

According to @LH44_Insights’ tweet that quoted motorsportmagazine.com, Myles Rowe said, “Lewis does his thing for blacks in Europe, in F1, and all over the world, but it’s really cool that Americans seem to be really proud of this title. For him to come out of the blue and actually repost and show support for the cause and what I’ve been doing means a lot because I really appreciate everything he does.”

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Rowe thanked Lewis Hamilton for congratulating him on his achievements and explained how he has had an effect all across the world. Even a rival team’s member praised Lewis Hamilton for all he’s done with regards to diversification.

Red Bull Senior member Calum Nicholas thanks Lewis Hamilton

While Lewis Hamilton is still the only black F1 driver on the grid, a whole lot of changes have happened in the paddock. Calum Nicholas himself is from a colored background but has made it to the pinnacle of motorsports. The Red Bull member thanked Lewis Hamilton for getting the conversation about the diversification of the F1 grid started. While the changes will take time, at least people have started to recognize the problem.

According to the Track Limits podcast, Calum Nicholas said, “What I will say is, firstly, we have to thank Lewis for starting the conversation.” He added, “One thing I will say is when I started in 2009, it’s a lot better now but the problem was still there then. But no one was having a conversation about it, there was no discussion to be had. So one of the things we have to thank Lewis for actually all of us need to thank Lewis for is just having the conversation started.”

What do you make of Myles Rowe’s comments about Lewis Hamilton?

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