After the video in which he uses racist language to describe Lewis Hamilton twice, Nelson Piquet has become a problem for Formula 1
Formula One took very seriously Nelson Piquet's use of a racist term to describe Lewis Hamilton in a video discussing the incident between the seven-time champion and Max Verstappen at Silverstone last year. Now, there is a real possibility that Piquet will be banned from the Formula One paddock forever.
The European press has been reporting in unison that Formula One is considering no longer accepting the three-time world champion in the paddock. More than that: it is the decision F1 is leaning towards making, according to the English TV network BBC and the British magazine Autosport.
Last Tuesday, after Formula 1, the FIA, and Mercedes started a wave of press releases that, although not mentioning Piquet, dealt with the situation and stood in solidarity with Lewis Hamilton, Damon Hill, 1996 world champion and current commentator for the British TV network Sky Sports, also touched on the subject. And he was blunt in also recalling the dismissal of former Red Bull Academy driver Jüri Vips after using racist language.
"This has already crossed the line. Even with some possible misunderstanding in the difference between English and Portuguese, it's certainly something you have to apologize about, but I don't know what kind of apology would be enough. It's very sad, actually. I feel very sorry for Lewis for having to deal with it constantly. It's something that ruins the experience of being a F1 driver perhaps more than we can possibly understand," he said.
"This case is one that has easy to confirm evidence that something was said and done. Just as it happened with Jüri Vips - and they took action against Jüri. We need to make sure that the sport is not just nodding to what is politically correct. It needs to be absolutely clear," he decreed.
"I've long wanted sport to be abundantly clear about standing up for certain values, but the argument against that was that they couldn't be political. That was the answer: we're not a political organization, we can't. But that's not politics: that's decency of human values. And that's what sport has to be about, too," he finished.
Hamilton also spoke up and said that after a long time for everyone to learn, now is the time for concrete actions to change archaic mentalities.
After the announcements, Hamilton's and Hill's statement, other current Formula 1 drivers also spoke out in solidarity. This was the case of George Russell, Hamilton's teammate at Mercedes, as well as Esteban Ocon and Charles Leclerc.
"Much respect to Lewis Hamilton. He has done more for the sport than any driver ever has, not just on the track, but off. The fact that he and so many others still have to deal with this kind of behavior is unacceptable. We need to come together against discrimination of all kinds," Russell said.
"I've known Lewis since I came to F1. He has always been extremely respectful to me and everyone he meets. These values should be the standard with anyone in the world. The comments made regarding Lewis cannot be tolerated, and we need to continue to push the sport to become more diverse and inclusive. We need to remove discriminatory behavior and racist language in all forms not only from the sport, but from our society," Leclerc said.
"All racist or discriminatory language has no place in our sport and society. Enough is enough. I have worked and spent a lot of time with Lewis over the years and I know what kind of person he is: always genuine and respectful to everyone around him. He has done so much for F1 on and off the track, and we are proud to have him leading our fight for diversity and inclusion in motor sport. I stand with Lewis in his efforts to make the sport a better place for everyone," Ocon added.
Piquet, for his part, took to the international press on Wednesday morning to speak out. He apologized to Hamilton, but said that the world understanding was due to a translation error. In the statement, however, he implies that, in Portuguese, it would only be a normal application of the expression 'neguinho'. Those who are able to interpret texts in Portuguese know that this is not the case.
"I would like to clarify the story circulating in the media regarding a comment I made during an interview last year," Piquet said. "What I said was poorly thought out, and I'm not going to defend myself against it, but I want to clarify that the term used is a term widely and historically used in colloquial Brazilian Portuguese as a synonym for 'guy' or 'person' and was never intended to offend," he followed.
"I never used the word that some translations have accused me of using. I strongly condemn any insinuation that I used the word for the purpose of belittling a pilot because of the color of his skin," he stressed. "I sincerely apologize to everyone who felt affected, including Lewis, who is an amazing driver, but the translation currently circulating on social media is not correct," he stressed.
"Discrimination has no place in F1 and in society and I am happy to clarify what I think in this regard," he concluded.
Thus, Piquet's future as a figure in F1 and its events is in serious jeopardy.