Nicholas Latifi, a former Williams driver, had a very unrewarding career in Formula 1 with the team, where he bagged only nine points in his career. He debuted in the year 2020, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Latifi is the son of a very successful Canadian businessman and was a paid driver for Williams.
Nicholas had been off the grid since being dropped by the Williams team in 2022. His last post on social media was about his journey with Williams. Ever since that post, he has been inactive on any platform, until recently, when he publicly announced a shocking career move on his social media.
Nicholas Latifi shares unexpected career change after leaving F1
Nicholas took a break from social media since his last post on Twitter, reflecting on the journey with Williams. Now, however, he has returned online, revealing his short-term ambitions to go back to school to study for an MBA at lbs. Knowing he couldn’t be behind the wheel of an F1 car this year, he began wondering what they could have in store for him and whether it involved racing or something completely different.
Life Update!
I wanted to let everyone know what I’ve been up to and what my plans are for the future. pic.twitter.com/NJKHISrtgd
— Nicholas Latifi (@NicholasLatifi) July 18, 2023
He said “Growing up, I always had a keen interest in the world of business, and I always said it was something I would’ve studied at university had I not gone the racing route. With that in mind, and knowing I might be taking a break from racing, I decided that I want to pursue an MBA degree and focus on something that would transform the next phase of my life. An MBA was always something that I had contemplated doing post-racing life, even if that had been into my late 30s and early 40s.”
Why Nicholas Latifi retired after 2021 Abu Dhabi crash? Explained
Back in 2021, Latifi crashed in the later stages of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which resulted in the safety car coming out. At this stage of the race, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was in the lead. But, when the safety car ended, Max Verstappen, on fresher tires, overtook Hamilton and won the 2021 world driver championship, making it one of the most controversial crashes in the history of the spot.
This accident proved to be a setback for Latifi’s F1 career and became one of the reasons for his retirement. This crash led him to receive death threats and a lot of hate on social media, His former team principal had this to say about the crash “It was extremely hard, I think that’s hard for absolutely everybody and I think everybody who didn’t go through this has no idea how that feels.”
The hate and the negativity played a huge role in the retirement of Nicholas, as he was really mentally affected by this event and could not recover himself in the next year. His lack of form resulted in him being dropped out, making way for American driver Logan Sargent.
It’s yet to be seen how the fans and the community will react to this career move. Comment on your thoughts below.
