“Ulterior motives” for Hamilton academy
Stevenage, Thursday: F1 driver manager and parasitic hanger-on Anthony Hamilton has admitted that there will be benefits to him when he launches his young driver academy later this season.
Motivated: F1 manager Anthony Hamilton
Hamilton, father of 2008 world champion Lewis, hopes to diversify his portfolio by allowing young drivers to test in 2009-spec Formula One machinery. He has arranged to lease two cars from McLaren at his own expense and is also expected to strike similar deals with other teams. The idea is then to hire out car and track time to aspiring racers.
“With no in-season testing in F1 it’s getting harder and harder for rookies to break onto the scene,” Hamilton explained while revealing his new business pursuit. “This is a great opportunity for talented people in the lower ranks of racing to test in F1 cars and get the experience required to be considered by F1’s top teams in the future.”
However, Hamilton has also conceded that the scheme also conveys benefits to him personally: “Of course, I wouldn’t be doing this if there wasn’t something in it for me.
“As I previously mentioned, the testing restrictions mean that running for young drivers is often limited. But it also means that I have little time to practice looking miserable and scowling whenever there’s a camera near me.”
Hamilton also believes that the business will make him more attractive as a driver manager: “As Flavio Briatore showed, it’s perfectly simple to be successful in the business of F1, even if you don’t actually know anything about motor racing, as long as you’re not too up-front about that fact. This will present the perfect cover to make it look like I am somehow even remotely qualified to manage F1 drivers.”
