Hamilton eyes staying in F1 into 2030s to race in African GP — SkimNews
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- Lewis Hamilton says he is effectively forced to stay in Formula 1 longer because Rwanda will host the sport's first African race — "my dream to race in Africa" — and must keep fighting to stay fit and keep punching out results to get there.
- Formula 1 announced a 10-year deal for Rwanda to host an African Grand Prix from the "early 2030s", gave no firm date for the first staging, and would bring F1 back to Africa for the first time since 1993.
- Ferrari's contract with Hamilton runs to at least the end of 2027, with a potential option to keep him in 2028; Hamilton turns 42 in January and would be 45 at the start of the 2030 season, and concedes there is no guarantee he is still on the grid then.
- Fernando Alonso is set to embark on another season with Aston Martin next year at the age of 45, the late-career benchmark sitting alongside Hamilton's own plan.
- Amnesty International called the 10-year race "presented by Visit Rwanda" a "sportswashing prize for the Rwandan authorities", citing arbitrary detention, torture and repression of free speech at home, plus Rwanda's support for the M23 armed group in eastern Congo.
- Aston Villa signed Rwanda as front-of-shirt sponsor in a deal worth £20m a season; Arsenal ended its eight-year Rwanda partnership at the end of last season after supporter-group pressure, PSG extended until 2028, and Bayern Munich dropped its commercial deal while extending an academy tie-up.
- Lewis Hamilton urged that Rwanda be approached "with humility", said Africa was never taught in English schools, that many present-day problems trace to colonialism and Western intervention, and called for efforts to "free Congo, free Sudan, free Syria, free Palestine".
Why it matters: Rwanda's 10-year F1 deal lands alongside Aston Villa's £20m-a-season shirt sponsorship, while Amnesty International says the country uses sport to polish an image marred by allegations of backing M23 in eastern Congo. Hamilton's own call to 'free Congo, free Sudan' places the showcase alongside live conflicts.
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