No black F1 Ferrari on the horizon for Hamilton

Although Lewis Hamilton might well become the tifosi’s favorite black knight, the seven-time F1 world champion won’t request a black Ferrari from the Scuderia when he moves to Maranello next year.

Trading in the sleek silver arrows of Mercedes for the Italian outfit’s prancing horse is a bold move in itself, but certain traditions are sacrosanct.

Hamilton has been a vocal advocate for diversity and inclusion in F1 and was instrumental in convincing Mercedes to switch from silver to black ahead of the 2020 season to promote the manufacturer’s anti-racism stance and as part of F1’s wider #WeRaceAsOne campaign.

Mercedes returned to silver in 2022 and then reverted to black last season, essentially to save weight. This year, the Brackley outfit’s cars feature a mix of both colors.

• Read also: Hamilton acknowledges he'll be on his own at Ferrari

However, Ferrari's signature red is as deeply ingrained in F1 history as the checkered flag itself.

Therefore, a black Ferrari would be a radical departure from tradition, and Hamilton clearly understands the significance of the Scuderia's heritage.

“I haven’t driven a black car for a while, so I probably won’t be pushing for that too early on,” the 39-year-old replied when queried on black potentially becoming the new red.

However, Hamilton has every intention of continuing his diversity push when he joins Ferrari, in complete collaboration with the manufacturer and its president, John Elkann.

“We’ve definitely spoken about impact work and John and the team have a lot of philanthropy work that they do, so we’ll be working very closely with Mission 44 and with the impact stuff that they’re doing,” he explained.

“I think within the sport, we have to continue to do more, but more outside we’ll be doing quite a bit together, so that’s really exciting.”

Fueled by his own experiences and a desire to see a more inclusive future in motorsport, Lewis Hamilton has never been content with just winning races.

In 2021, he took a stand by launching Mission 44, a non-profit organization dedicated to tackling diversity issues within Formula 1 and the broader motorsport world.

This wasn't just a symbolic gesture – Hamilton put his money where his mouth was, investing a staggering £20 million of his own funds to kickstart the initiative.

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