Former Formula 1 world champion, Nelson Piquet has apologised for comments he made against Sir Lewis Hamilton on a podcast, in November, last year.
The three-time world champion has been publicly scrutinised over the last 24 hours after Piquet was found using racial language in regards to current Mercedes driver, and seven-time world champion, Hamilton.
On Wednesday, June 29, the Brazilian issued a statement which he apologised for the remarks he made. However, he claims there was no racial intent with his words.
In the statement, he said:
“I would like to clear up the stories circulating in the media about a comment I made in an interview last year.
“What I said was ill thought out, and I make no defence for it, but I will clarify that the term used is one that has widely and historically been used colloquially in Brazilian Portuguese as a synonym for ‘guy’ or ‘person’ and was never intended to offend.
“I would never use the word I have been accused of in some translations. I strongly condemn any suggestion that the word was used by me with the aim of belittling a driver because of his skin colour.
“I apologise wholeheartedly to anyone that was offended, including Lewis, who is an incredible driver, but the translation in some media that is now circulating on social media is not correct.
“Discrimination has no place in F1 or society and I am happy to clarify my thoughts in that respect.”
After the news broke, regarding Piquet’s comments, F1, the FIA, F1 teams and current drivers on the grid raised their voice to support Hamilton.
Following Piquet’s remarks, the three-time world champion (who won the drivers championship in 1981, 1983 and 1987) will, allegedly, not be allowed back inside the F1 paddock.
That’s it for the article: Nelson piquet apologises for ‘ill thought out’ comment! What do you think, is a permanent ban from the F1 paddock the best option to tackle racism in the sport? Let us know in the comments!
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
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Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Nelson Piquet apologises for ‘ill thought out’ comment
29th June 2022 0 By Kamron KentFormer Formula 1 world champion, Nelson Piquet has apologised for comments he made against Sir Lewis Hamilton on a podcast, in November, last year.
The three-time world champion has been publicly scrutinised over the last 24 hours after Piquet was found using racial language in regards to current Mercedes driver, and seven-time world champion, Hamilton.
On Wednesday, June 29, the Brazilian issued a statement which he apologised for the remarks he made. However, he claims there was no racial intent with his words.
In the statement, he said:
“I would like to clear up the stories circulating in the media about a comment I made in an interview last year.
“What I said was ill thought out, and I make no defence for it, but I will clarify that the term used is one that has widely and historically been used colloquially in Brazilian Portuguese as a synonym for ‘guy’ or ‘person’ and was never intended to offend.
“I would never use the word I have been accused of in some translations. I strongly condemn any suggestion that the word was used by me with the aim of belittling a driver because of his skin colour.
“I apologise wholeheartedly to anyone that was offended, including Lewis, who is an incredible driver, but the translation in some media that is now circulating on social media is not correct.
“Discrimination has no place in F1 or society and I am happy to clarify my thoughts in that respect.”
After the news broke, regarding Piquet’s comments, F1, the FIA, F1 teams and current drivers on the grid raised their voice to support Hamilton.
Following Piquet’s remarks, the three-time world champion (who won the drivers championship in 1981, 1983 and 1987) will, allegedly, not be allowed back inside the F1 paddock.
That’s it for the article: Nelson piquet apologises for ‘ill thought out’ comment! What do you think, is a permanent ban from the F1 paddock the best option to tackle racism in the sport? Let us know in the comments!
Read more Formula 1 here!
To keep up to date with the latest news from Apex Motorsports, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!
Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
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Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
About the author
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.