Lewis Hamilton has unveiled his second capsule collection for Dior, featuring more than 20 looks blending workwear, streetwear and performance-wear in a series of vibrant colorways. The Ferrari Formula 1 driver, who inked an ambassadorship deal last summer, is continuing his collaboration with the French fashion house following the exit of Dior Men artistic director Kim Jones in January.
“My second lifestyle capsule with Dior is here,” Hamilton wrote on Instagram alongside a series of behind-the-scenes snaps. “A heartfelt thank you to the incredible team I had the pleasure of working with – your passion, creativity, and dedication made this journey unforgettable. To everyone at the house of Dior, thank you for your patience, enthusiasm, and commitment throughout the process,” he went on.
“I truly cherish the time we spent designing these pieces together. I’ve learned so much from each of you and will always be grateful. It’s always a privilege to be in a room full of such inspiring artists and thinkers.”
The expansive capsule features accessories like bucket hats and backpacks, along with bomber jackets and a cashmere jersey knit vest. Hamilton blended his personal style with sharp, sophisticated tailoring that the historic house is best known for, resulting in standout pieces like the officer jacket crafted from wool cavalry twill and a multi-colored zipped jacket and track pant set with a gradient effect.
The 40-year-old shared more snaps on his second Instagram account, highlighting the Christian Dior Couture label embroidered with the words ‘South Africa’. He also showed off the B44 sneakers, which are available in several colorways and include elaborate laces inspired by climbing ropes. The collection has already been worn by BTS musician Jimin and has attracted attention from the likes of reality-star-slash-F1-fan Jason Oppenheim who jumped into Hamilton’s Instagram comments to enquire about the grey backpack seen in his images.
Prior to Jones’ departure from Dior Men earlier this year, the London-born designer spoke about bonding with the seven-time world champion over their shared love of the African continent. “Some of the fabrics were made in Burkina Faso. We’re working with someone who’s helping us source sustainable fabrics throughout the continent and really looking at what we can do to help get the next generation of people educated to be able to come work in a studio like this,” Jones said.
Meanwhile, Hamilton discussed the concept of ‘Afrofuturism’ and revealed that his transformative travels to Morocco, Senegal, Mozambique, Benin and Madagascar deeply inspired his work with Dior. “I heard so many incredible stories that inspired me to imagine the future of Black culture. The way we tell stories through art, science and philosophy is really special,” Hamilton said in a statement. “Seeing these ideas brought to life through color and movement inspired me. Being authentic to your style and communicating yourself through clothing is such a powerful feeling.”
On track, Hamilton has remained committed to securing Africa’s place on the F1 calendar before he retires from motorsport. “We can’t be adding races in other locations and continuing to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from. No one gives anything to Africa,” he said at the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix. “There’s a huge amount of work that needs to be done there,” he continued. “I think a lot of the world that haven’t been there don’t realise how beautiful the place is, how vast it is. And probably they don’t even know what the countries are doing still to those places in terms of holding back."
Talks to reinstate the South African GP, which was last on the calendar in 1993, stalled due to the Kyalami circuit not meeting modern standards. It leaves Rwanda as a possible host for F1’s proposed return to the continent. At the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix Hamilton reiterated that F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali had been equally committed to the cause. “I’ve been speaking to him so much about getting the race in Africa and he’s really the one that’s promised that he’s going to make sure we get this done before I leave here, so that’s important,” Hamilton said.
