Two-time Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 class winner Danny Watts has announced that he is homosexual.
Two-time Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 class winner Danny Watts has announced that he is homosexual.
The 37-year-old is believed to be the highest-profile European racing driver to come out so far.
āYou feel like you have to hide it within motorsport because itās a very masculine sport,ā Watts told Motorsport.com.
āThere was something burning inside that said āright, you canāt hide it anymore, youāve got to be free and be true to yourself and let it go out thereā.
āI told close family members and friends. There was obviously shock to start with but people were also very supportive, which was nice. So I thought if theyāre cool with it, letās go with it.ā
Watts ended his racing career after Le Mans last year and is now focused on driver coaching.
He admitted making the announcement felt āeasier now Iāve stopped racingā as he had been concerned about how sponsors and teams might react.
āThe biggest thing is worrying what people will think and how theyāll portray you, how theyāll act around you,ā said Watts. āItās stupid things like thinking do I go and shake hands with people, will they shake your hand back?
āAm I going to be able to look them in the eye or not? Is it going to be awkward? There are a million and one questions going round in my head about how this is all going to work out.
"My stomach is churning about the next paddock I go to and people knowing and how theyāll think of me. Itās bloody scary.ā
Watts described recent months as āhorribleā and explained he had decided making a public announcement would be healthier than only informing people close to him.
āYou can either keep it secret in racing and have your separate life where your close friends and family know, or you can just go all out and say āthere you go, my cards are on the table, take it or leave itā,ā he said.
āThe hardest bit has been the last six months in terms of fighting it. Youāre in denial to everyone, you seem happy-go-lucky and outgoing, but when youāre on your own and climb into bed at night itās on your mind and it wears you down.
"I got to a point where I thought Iām not happy in my life. Iām not enjoying anything. So whatās the best solution? Just come out and just do it. If itās out there and everyone knows about it then they can think what they want, whether itās good or bad or ugly.
"At least I can get into bed at night not having to think about it and know that itās out in the open and I can live life a lot happier.ā
Prior to focusing on sportscars with Strakka, Wattsā single-seater career included Formula First and Formula Renault UK titles, British Formula 3 race victories and podium finishes in A1GP.
Writerās view
Some might feel weāre wrong to write about a driverās sexuality, that this is a private life detail irrelevant to our motorsport remit.
But thereās a difference between someone preferring to keep their personal life out of the spotlight and someone feeling they have absolutely no choice but to keep their personal life completely private from their sport because the alternative is terrifying.
My first thoughts on learning of Watts coming out was sadness that it had to be news at all, that there were still any industries in 2017 where someone would feel an announcement about their sexuality was even necessary rather than being able to safely assume their peers would accept them regardless.
Listening to Watts describe how he has felt in the build-up to his announcement was almost harrowing at times.
No one should have to feel what he has in recent months - and hopefully the motorsport world will react in a way that shows he neednāt have, and that others having the same struggles wonāt have to. Thereās enough competitive and financial pressure on young racers without them having to fear their own identity.
Motorsportās conscious decision to make (hetero)sexuality part of its appeal doesnāt help in this regard either. There are still FIA-sanctioned world championships that feel a race canāt start without heavily reinforced cleavage displays on its grid. That issue is a whole separate minefield for another day, but its implication that this is what appeals to a racing driver or fanās desires has consequences.
Itās statistically ludicrous to think that only heterosexual white males can be any good at driving fast or that only heterosexual white males would enjoy watching people drive fast. Gender and ethnicity arenāt the barriers to motorsport success/enjoyment that they once implicitly appeared to be, and sexuality shouldnāt be either.
Note: it takes a lot of courage, especially in such a āmanās sportā world such as F1, WEC and all other categories of motorsport. Kudos to Danny.
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