More Formula One drivers are expected to stand rather than take a knee at this weekend’s Styrian Grand Prix.

Ahead of the season-opening Austrian GP last Sunday, all 20 drivers lined up on the grid in a powerful message against racism, with 14 of them taking a knee.

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Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, were among six who elected to stand in the moments before Sunday’s race at the Red Bull Ring, although both posted messages saying they were committed to the fight for equality.

Nineteen of the drivers donned t-shirts emblazoned with the message ‘End Racism’, while Lewis Hamilton wore a ‘Black Lives Matter’ t-shirt.

Now it is believed that some of the drivers who knelt last weekend could now decide to stand on Sunday, when they return to the same track for the new Styrian GP.

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Formula One bosses will not stop Lewis Hamilton from continuing to take a knee at races this season.

Hamilton knelt before the first round in Austria, and subsequently revealed he would carry on performing the gesture if he was provided with a platform to do so by the sport.

It is understood that both Formula One’s American owners Liberty Media and governing body the FIA will inform Britain’s six-time world champion that he is free to kneel at the next instalment of the championship in Austria this weekend and for the remainder of the year.

The final decision is set to rest with the drivers, who are likely to discuss the divisive subject again in Spielberg on Friday.

Darren Bent has praised Hamilton for battling his critics and pioneering equality and the Black Lives Matter message in Formula One.

“Lewis Hamilton has been doing so much for that sport to try and open people’s eyes.

“It was a bit strange to not to see everyone kneeling, it shows there’s still a little bit of a divide there.

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Today was an important moment for me and all the people out there who are working for and hoping for change. For a more equal and just society. I may get criticism in the media and elsewhere, but this fight is about equality, not politics or promotion. To me it was an emotional and poignant chapter in the progress of making F1 a more diverse and inclusive sport. I want a better future for our generation and the ones after us. There is so much that needs to be done. No one is perfect but if we all chip in and do our part, we can see change. I truly believe that. Thank you to my team for their incredible support and hard work this weekend and thank you to all who supported. Let’s keep pushing, guys. See you next week. Love. #EndRacism #BlackLivesMatter

A post shared by Lewis Hamilton (@lewishamilton) on Jul 5, 2020 at 12:59pm PDT

“I know some of them will say kneeling means something different in their countries… but it’s a step in the right direction for that sport.

“Hamilton has come under fire, by the way, the criticism and stick he’s taken especially during this whole Black Lives Matter movement…

“If you look at some of the comments he gets on a daily basis on Twitter, for someone who is an absolute pioneer in his sport, winning six world titles, and for him to get the kind of stick he does, it’s totally uncalled for, it’s totally unjustified.

“And even so, he’s still doing all he can to try and take this forward.”

Source: TalkSport.com Motorsport