Lewis Hamilton is mocked for saying he'll cut his carbon footprint with new £80,000 Mercedes

Formula One ace Lewis Hamilton has been mocked for saying he will cut his carbon footprint – with a new £80,000 top-of-the-range Mercedes.

The 35-year-old motorist was accused of being out-of-touch after boasting about the electric Mercedes EQS to his 20 million Instagram followers.

Six-time world champion Hamilton bragged he is doing his bit to help the environment, despite driving gas-guzzling F1 cars and jetting around the world.

Hamilton, who is paid around £38million a year by Mercedes, according to Forbes, recently gushed over the EQS, which can go from 0 to 60mph in 4.5 seconds, as he preached ‘it’s important we all take a moment to understand our footprint and the small changes we can make in our everyday lives to put our planet first’.

But the Instagram post sparked a furious online backlash, with social media users branding Hamilton a ‘clown’ and pointing out that the flash motor – due to be released next year – will be out of the price range of most people.

Six-time world champion Hamilton bragged he is doing his bit to help the environment, despite driving gas-guzzling F1 cars and jetting around the world

He recently gushed over the EQS, which can go from 0 to 60mph in 4.5 seconds, as he preached ‘it’s important we all take a moment to understand our footprint and the small changes we can make in our everyday lives to put our planet first’

The 35-year-old motorist was accused of being out-of-touch after boasting about the electric Mercedes EQS to his 20 million Instagram followers

But the Instagram post sparked a furious online backlash, with Instagram accounts branding Hamilton a ‘clown’ and pointing out that the flash motor – due to be released next year – will be out of the price range of most people

Key figures: The Mercedes EQS

Range: 435 miles

Charging time: 20 minutes (from empty to 80 per cent)

Horsepower: 469hp

0 – 60mph: 4.5 seconds

Price: Around £80,000

Source: Carwow

Hamilton told his millions of followers: ‘Recently I’ve been making many changes in my life to reduce my impact on the environment.

‘The first step in this journey was to understand my personal impact on the planet so I could make changes to improve it.

‘Since then, I have offset my carbon footprint from my Formula 1 career dating back to 2007, I have reduced travel where possible, I have gone plant-based and outside of the track, I try to use electric cars wherever possible.

‘I also want to use my position as a racing driver to enforce positive and permanent change, which is why I’m working closely with Mercedes to slowly move their fleet of cars towards electric. This is my new dream car, the new EQS fully electric Mercedes. I can’t wait until it’s released!’

He added: ‘It’s difficult to always be perfect when we go about our daily lives, but I’m continuing to learn how to be better and I’m committed to staying educated and informed so I can play my part.

The 35-year-old motorist was accused of being out-of-touch after boasting about the electric Mercedes EQS to his 20 million Instagram followers

Lewis Hamilton’s garage: A list of the F1 superstar’s supercars

1. McLaren P1

2. 1966 Shelby Cobra 427

3. Ferrari LaFerrari

4. Vision Mercedes Maybach 6

5. Pagani Zonda 760

6. Mercedes AMG GTR

7. Ferrari 599 Aperta

8. Mercedes Maybach S600

9. Mercedes AMG G63

10. Mercedes SLS AMG

11. Ford Shelby Mustang GT500

12. Mercedes AMG Project One

‘Small steps lead to big change, so it’s important we all take a moment to understand our footprint and the small changes we can make in our everyday lives to put our planet first.

‘The last step for me will be when I step away from this sport and can focus fully on helping heal the world to provide a better future for our kids and our kids’ kids.’

But Instagram users ridiculed Hamilton, a proud vegan, for hailing the fully electric motor, with one account posting: ‘Seriously!!! You must have one of the biggest carbon footprints in the world. How can anybody take this seriously.’

Another complained: ‘To reduce my impact on the environment I decided to drive the most emitting car on earth for hours every week, in different countries, flying with private jets, with a team using dozens of trucks, selling millions of cars.

‘Are you a clown or what?’

One Instagram user commented: ‘I guess you didn’t have to pay for the car, so it’s not much of an effort.’

‘If you want to reduce your carbon-footprint; spend less – thats it, thats all,’ another social media user ranted last week.

‘Bruh if you cared so much about the environment, you would retire from F1 and you own a Pagani Zonda,’ an Instagram user said.

Hamilton has been previously criticised for flying his pet pooches all around the world in a private jet.

The motorist has at least 12 other supercars, including his £880,000 McLaren P1, £1.2million 1966 Shelby Cobra 427, and £865,000 Ferrari LaFerrari.

Last year the champion racer encouraged followers to ‘go vegan,’ writing: ‘It is the only way to truly save our planet today. It can be done so quickly, all you have to do is put your mind to it.

‘Honestly I feel like giving up on everything. Shut down completely. Why bother when the world is such a mess and people don’t seem to care. I’m going to take a moment away to gather my thoughts. Thank you to those of you who do give a damn about the world.’

The 35-year-old’s comments were quickly mocked by followers, as one Twitter user wrote: ‘It’s hard to be taken serious about the climate when your job is to race aimlessly around in circles in a gas guzzling land rocket.’

Lewis Hamilton made clear his feelings about the state of the world. He is pictured on his private jet, which he has reportedly now sold

Lewis Hamilton: Formula 1 great who has never been afraid to speak his mind

From encouraging followers to go vegan, to sharing his views on racism and the Black Lives Matter movement, Lewis Hamilton has never been afraid to speak his mind.

In a series of Instagram posts last year, the Formula One great said: ‘Go vegan, it is the only way to truly save our planet today. It can be done so quickly, all you have to do is put your mind to it.

Earlier this year, amid the Black Lives Matter protests, Hamilton slammed Bernie Ecclestone as ‘ignorant and uneducated,’ after the ex-F1 boss said ‘black people are more racist than white people’.

Lewis Hamilton, pictured at a Black Lives Matter march in June, has shared his experience with racial abuse – including when fans dressed in blackface at the Spanish Grand Prix in 2008

In June, Hamilton was seen attending Black Lives Matter protests in London, as he spoke out against the racist abuse he had suffered as he rose to the top of the sport.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Hamilton said Britain had a bias, which included ‘telling black women they’re too confident, treating black men like a threat or asking us to change our natural appearance to look more ‘professional’.

‘As a nation, we’re quick to condemn monkey noises and bananas thrown at black footballers, but when it comes to addressing structural issues, the people in power stay silent.

He added: ‘Being the first black ‘anything’ is a proud and lonely walk. When I started out, I took my father’s advice to work twice as hard, keep my head down, my mouth shut, and let my driving do the talking.

‘It was only when wearing my helmet that I felt free to be myself.’

Lewis Hamilton was taunted by fans in blackface at the Spanish Grand Prix in 2008 and again in 2009

Lewis Hamilton branded former F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, pictured together in 2015, ‘ignorant and uneducated,’ after the 89-year-old said ‘black people are more racist than white people’

Hamilton hit out at the racist abuse he had received as a driver in response to allegedly fabricated quotes, which were reportedly from an F1 chief, that claimed drivers involved in the anti-racism movement could be distracted.

In the since deleted post, Hamilton said: ‘It deeply saddens me that you consider fighting for equal treatment of black people and people of colour, a distraction.

‘I’m actually quite offended. A distraction for me was fans showing up in black face to taunt my family on race weekends.

‘A distraction for me was the unnecessary and additional adversity and unfair treatment I faced as a child, teen, and even now, due to the colour of my skin.

‘I hope this speaks volumes to the few people of colour you do have on your team about your priorities and how you view them. Wake up. This sport needs to change.’