Hamilton and Tung could bring some color to F1
Some observers criticize F1 (and motorsports in general) for its racial homogeny. Aside from the notable exception of some Japanese drivers (and Williams test driver Narain Karthikeyan) the field of grand prix pilots is almost entirely white, with the majority of drivers coming from Europe.
McLaren protégé Lewis Hamilton, a Black British driver of West Indie origin, might add some color to the F1 grid if he makes the jump from GP2 to Formula One next season as many predict. Now Ho-Pin Tung, champion of the German F3 series, is looking to advance to GP2 (or alternatively Champ Cars) for next season with an eye towards F1 in 2008. Ethnically Chinese, Tung, who was born in Holland and tested for Williams in 2003, would be China's first F1 driver.
Should race be a consideration in racing, or should talent and capability be the sole factors? Does the fact that both Hamilton and Tung were born in European countries minimize the diversity they could bring to motorsport? Toss in your two cents in our comments section (and please, keep it tasteful).
[Source: F1i.com]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Spaceweasel 6:48PM (10/12/2006)
Ideally, of course, race shouldn't matter. But in todays corporate racing world, how much sponsorship a driver brings to the table materially affects his ability to get a ride. And the more you bring to the table, the better your ride is likely to be. Marketing is about getting people to identify with your product. The easier it is for them to identify with your spokesperson, the more likely they are to buy it/use it/wear it/smoke it. Tung and Hamilton could bring a whole new crowd with a whole new pocketbook to the races, which makes things better for everyone.
At the end of the day, though, they still have to perform. Nobody buys anything from a perenial loser.
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dan drive 6:56PM (10/12/2006)
You tell us to keep the comments tasteful but you yourself are insulting many people with your uneducated comments.
Excuse me but have you heard of Indian racer Narain Karthikeyan who raced for Jordan in 2005 and now a Williams test driver.
Yes I know the ethnic balance in motor racing is extremely uneven but please do some research before you post on website viewed by millions of people worldwide on such a sensitive subject.
p.s West Indie origin is that some type of new wave music(????)
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felonious monk 7:05PM (10/12/2006)
"would be China's first F1 driver."
BTW, since WW2 there have been two Chinas; the People's Republic of China (mainland) and the Republic of China (ROC, Taiwan). Tung, being born in Holland, has no ties to either unless he himself pledges allegiance to one of them.
Yes, there exist a world beyond American borders.
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galapodor 7:07PM (10/12/2006)
i agree to post .2 i cant believe you missed out on the Indian racer Narain Karthikeyan.
bigotry at its finest.
"McLaren protégé Lewis Hamilton, a Black British driver of West Indie origin,"
How insulting can you get? He also has a white English mother but that does not count does it because that makes the story look less interesting. He is not a bag of nuts with an a simple "origin" that you can pigeonhole him with.
Saying that he solely originates from the caribbean is a greatly insulting comment. You are more interested in sensationalising the story more than actually stating facts and the full story proper.congratulations you are now a fully paid up autoblog contributor!.
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shakeaaar khan 7:24PM (10/12/2006)
lol the contributer must be trying to start a flame war!
"Hamilton and Tung could bring some color to F1"
what a stupid and deeply moronic title. Saying that the entire f1 field is made up of generic naziesque white crackers?! wrong, i cannot find another race series with such a diverse mix of countries.
You do not mention past 50 years of nascar with the field of 30+ cars driven by WHITE AMERICNANS in AMERICAN "ONLY" BUILT CARS do you. I am sure you are trying to flame F1 for being white europeans, but it is nothing in comparison compared to overwhelming race bias in NASCAR.
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Trough 7:35PM (10/12/2006)
I think the NBA needs more Cambodian players.
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AdrianM 8:50PM (10/12/2006)
Lol, Trough, I understand your point. People are much to concerned about race these days. This is a racing series, whether we care that the driver is black or asian or white is hardly important. However people will always attempt to say "the white man is keeping X or Y down" at any opportunity. It's quite trendy.
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Ian 9:34PM (10/12/2006)
Methinks the writer is mixing "ethnicity" or "race" with Nationality.
Hamilton is a Brit.
Tung is Dutch.
As far as I know Tung does not represent the country China, or Taiwan.
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Noah Joseph 9:40PM (10/12/2006)
Dan Drive (#2): Thanks for pointing out the omission of Narain. Of course I made that correction. But how can you call me uneducated when you think the West Indies is a type of music?
Felonious Monk (#3): Chinese is an ethnicity, not a political affiliation. And for your information, I don’t live in America.
Galapodor (#4): Leaving out Karthikeyan was an omission, not bigotry. So why don’t you just calm down. As for Hamilton, he is Black. I didn’t make it up. I don’t see the necessity for personal attacks, but if that makes you feel better, good for you.
I’ll commend everyone else (save Shakeaaar Khan in #5) for addressing the substance and not the style. I’d tend to agree with “Spaceweasel” in our first comment: as a sport, race shouldn’t matter, but as a business, the diversity attracts more markets.
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Ray 9:46PM (10/12/2006)
For me, in all sporting or athletic endeavours talent and capability is the only thing that matters. Period.
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Ray 9:47PM (10/12/2006)
Corrrection: "are the only things that matter."
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Spike 10:09PM (10/12/2006)
I think another issue as great or if not greater is the fact that F1 is an elitist sport for the wealthy. The costs of entry are tremendous any way you look at it. As a result, it becomes really difficult for visible minorities from under-developed countries to participate. In contrast, other sports such as soccer have lesser barriers in terms of cost and ultimately the only thing holding someone back from high-level competition is talent.
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Quasi 1:30AM (10/13/2006)
Alex Yoong from Malaysia (Malaysian-chinese)
Dun forget about him.
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Pete C 12:25AM (10/13/2006)
Hey, why would Tung, who was born in Holland, be China's first F1 driver? He's not from China. For all we know, he's never even been there. However, he may be the first Chinese F1 driver. That would be interesting.
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verdegrrl 12:54AM (10/13/2006)
I don't care what colour he is, he's cute!
Yeah yeah, you guys can cringe, but the fact remains that he has appeal with some of the undocumented female viewers.
Almost as charming as drifting star Ken Gushi!
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Greg A. 1:45AM (10/13/2006)
"Some observers criticize F1 (and motorsports in general) for its racial homogeny."
While 'homogeny' is a word, I believe 'homogeneity' is the proper word in this context. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
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Cars 2:21AM (10/13/2006)
I think It doesn't matter, wether some in belongs to asia or else where. the point is, who is much better on ground. performance does matter not nationality.
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chewy 2:00AM (10/13/2006)
I think another issue as great or if not greater is the fact that F1 is an elitist sport for the wealthy
I think there were a few very good races from countries such as Brazil and Columbia (both are countries that I think we can agree aren't the richest in the world) Then again, Finland has produced some very fine racers in the past decade or so. Money sure helps, but talent prevails in the end.
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chewy 2:01AM (10/13/2006)
I meant there were very good race car drivers (racers)
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Larry 2:19AM (10/13/2006)
Sponsors are to blame, if anyone. Imagine if Tiger Woods was a race drive? Would he be able to find a ride?
We have a long way to go!
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