WITH A new Formula One season getting under way later this month, world champion Sir Lewis Hamilton has said that it is still important to have discussions in regards to race and discrimination.

Just 12 weeks after the chequered flag fell on the 2020 Formula One season, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team officially revealed its challenger for the 2021 season.

The Mercedes- AMG F1 W12 E Performance was presented in the brand-new Race Bays at the tam’s Brackley technical centre, officially opening a cutting-edge facility that has been created over the past 18 months.

The team ran last year’s car in a special black livery, which they switched to before the delayed season started, as a show of support for diversity and a stand against racism and discrimination everywhere – a cause that Hamilton particularly embraced throughout the season.

Hamilton, 35, took a knee on the grid and wore anti-racism slogans in support of the cause last season. He said: “There is no way that I could stay silent. And once I said that to myself, I didn’t hold any fear.”

“Things pass and die down. But this continues to be an issue that affects my day-to-day life. It’s important to keep having the conversation.”

Mercedes have heeded the call, committing to running a predominantly black livery in 2021 and ensuring that all their staff undertake training on unconscious bias and “inclusive excellence.”

Last season, Mercedes raced with a black base livery as a public pledge for greater diversity and inclusion within both the team and the sport.

This was the start of a long journey and they’ve made some important initial steps in recent months, with much more still to come over the course of this season and beyond.

The black base livery remains for the 2021 season as a sign of the team’s continued commitment to becoming more diverse and inclusive as a company.

Projects such as the partnership with the Mulberry Schools Trust, the development of the Accelerate 25 programme for the team and a new foundation that they will jointly create with Hamilton will mark the very start of this journey.

“We have rolled out training for our recruiters to sensitise them on unconscious bias and all our managers have completed our inclusive excellence programme,” added said Mercedes Team Principal and CEO of the team, Toto Wolff.

“At the same time, we’ve set ourselves the goal of at least 25 percent of all new starters coming from under-represented groups for the next five years.

“The latest step is a joint foundation that we will create together with Lewis to improve all aspects of diversity in motorsport.

“All of these measures are encouraging, but we know that real change takes time and we’re at the start of a very long journey.

“So, this topic will very much remain in our focus for years to come as we build on the foundations we’ve laid over the past few months.”