Former three-time World Champion Nelson Piquet has received widespread condemnation for his terrible racial remarks toward Sir Lewis Hamilton.
An interview on a Brazilian podcast last year revealed Piquet’s horrendous racist language against Hamilton - a man who has become an icon of diversity and racial inclusion in Formula One.
Using an antiquated slur that I won’t repeat here, Piquet (who himself comes from the highly diverse nation of Brazil) should know better than this and has forever tarnished his objectively-strong legacy in the sport.
There’s no denying Nelson Piquet’s skill on the track, but this doesn’t give him a free pass to use racist language.
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Piquet Comments A Disgrace
Needless to say, I fully side with Hamilton and agree with him when he says there is no place for racism in Formula One or sport in general. Piquet’s comments are alarmingly outdated, misinformed, and idiotic.
How dare he refer to Hamilton, an icon of F1 diversity and inclusion, by the gross epithet he used on the podcast. If you ask me, Piquet deserves swift condemnation followed by education on how to treat people properly.
Gary Lineker, former footballer and current BBC presenter, described Piquet as a ‘’dreadful bloke’’ - a sentiment that I very much share. You see, the comments made by the former driver constitute the mere tip of his hateful iceberg.
He’s used homophobic langauge to describe compatriot Ayrton Senna and used to describe Enzo Ferrari as ‘senile’. Despite these brazen displays of idiocy, Piquet continued to be given a platform to share his drivel.
Hamilton Response
Lewis Hamilton said ‘’the time has come for action’’ before adding, in another statement, that ‘archaic’ attitudes ‘need to change’. It’s shocking that in 2022, there are still people out there harboring these attitudes and broadcasting them to the public. Whilst I feel no sympathy for Piquet, I do feel for his fans as they’ve been massively let down, once again, by the driver’s language.
This racism incident comes after Red Bull parted ways with Estonian reserve driver Juri Vips after he used the n-word on a video game stream. It seems that Formula One is cracking down on vulgar and offensive rhetoric and opening up its doors to a more diverse workforce and audience.
Lewis Hamilton did a great job of rising above the comments made to him and will continue to be one of Britain’s greatest sporting icons. Unlike Nelson Piquet, Hamilton’s legacy in Formula One will not be a murky and complicated matter - he’s a great driver, but more importantly a great person who has kicked every racial barrier he has met down with incredible force.
There is still work to be done to make Formula One a more inclusive organisation, but the British public has great faith in Lewis to bring the sport forward as it continues to become mainstream.
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