Lewis Hamilton’s management criticized by his father
Highly criticized since the beginning of the season, Lewis Hamilton continues to make headlines. This time, it's his father, Anthony Hamilton, expressing his opinion by pointing a finger at the company managing his son, XIX Entertainment.
At the beginning of 2010, after many years of collaboration marked by the title of Formula 1 World Champion in 2008, Lewis Hamilton dismissed his father from his role as manager. The reasons for this decision were not clearly discussed by Hamilton himself in March 2010: « I think it was inevitable that there would be some change at some point. […] We looked for other people, but I didn’t feel comfortable with them. I liked having my father as my agent and taking care of me because I trust him. I know he does things for the right reasons. […] Since my father has always been my manager and we have always worked together, I haven’t been able to fully have that father-son relationship since I was a child and we went to radio-controlled car competitions – and we did it just for fun. So, that’s what I want. »
At the time, citing the fact that McLaren was a family, the British driver indicated that he didn’t think he needed a manager as the team took such good care of him. A decision he reconsidered at the start of this season when he signed a contract with the management company XIX Entertainment, led by former Spice Girls agent Simon Fuller, which counts among its clients athletes like Andy Murray and David Beckham, as well as personalities such as Victoria Beckham and Jennifer Lopez. He considered this a well-thought-out decision in an interview with *The Guardian* in March: “It was important for me to take my time to make this decision because it has to be right for my career and my long-term future. […] I felt that Simon Fuller and his team not only wanted to help me become a better driver, but they also shared my long-term ambitions.”
The season hasn’t been easy for Lewis Hamilton, faced with numerous incidents both on and off the track, the latest being the collision with Felipe Massa. It didn’t take much for Anthony Hamilton to react, once again in the columns of The Guardian: « You can look everywhere in the pit line, every driver, except Lewis, has a manager in their life, and not people from a company. I am sure his management is very good – I don’t know – but Formula 1 drivers need people personally involved in their lives because the pressure is immense. They need to be present and I don’t think you can do the job by sending someone else ».
The one who has become Paul Di Resta’s manager drives the point home about XIX Entertainment: « I don’t know any driver manager who sends someone else to do the job. You sign a Formula 1 driver, so come and do your job. It’s not a lack of respect towards anyone, but that’s how business works ». Anthony Hamilton adds, about his son: « I saw Lewis and he’s fine. He will come back. It’s tough at the moment, but he will return, there’s no doubt ».
As a reminder, Lewis Hamilton lost all chance of being crowned following the Singapore Grand Prix where he finished in fifth position. Currently fifth in the championship, he is 17 points behind his teammate, Jenson Button, who is second in the standings, and 141 points behind Sebastian Vettel.
