Lewis Hamilton responds to Nelson Piquet's racist remark
Hamilton has taken to social media to respond to Piquet's recent comments with a series of tweets.
Imagine https://t.co/jzRsAI2uuA
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) June 28, 2022
He then posted a tweet in Portuguese, which translates to: 'Let's focus on changing the mindset'.
Vamos focar em mudar a mentalidade
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) June 28, 2022
Hamilton followed that up with a third tweet calling for 'action.
It’s more than language. These archaic mindsets need to change and have no place in our sport. I’ve been surrounded by these attitudes and targeted my whole life. There has been plenty of time to learn. Time has come for action.
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) June 28, 2022
What did Nelson Piquet say?
The insult happened in an interview that Piquet gave in November 2021, when talking about last year’s F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, but has only just come to light.
Former driver Piquet, from Brazil, criticised Hamilton for his clash with Max Verstappen and called him a racist word, in his native language.
The rough translation, as provided by Brazilian media, is: “The [racist term] put the car in and left because there was no way to get past two cars at that corner. He did dirty."
The quotes have been reported by many of Brazil’s biggest outlets including CNN, O Globo, Yahoo and Folha de Sao Paulo.
The interview was given to journalist Ricardo Oliveira to a Brazilian outlet called Motorsport Talk.
The incident in question, from the 2021 F1 British Grand Prix, is when Hamilton and Verstappen bumped. Hamilton went on to win the race.
They return to Silverstone this weekend.
Piquet, who won three F1 world championships in the 1980s, is also the father of Verstappen’s girlfriend, Kelly Piquet.
Piquet was in the public eye last year when he drove a Rolls-Royce for Brazil’s controversial president, Jair Bolsonaro, at the country’s Independence Day.
Piquet apologises to Hamilton - but disputes translation of offensive word
- Who is Nelson Piquet? Everything you need to know...
In response to Piquet's comments, F1 released a statement on Tuesday morning.
“Discriminatory or racist language is unacceptable in any form and has no part in society. Lewis is an incredible ambassador for our sport and deserves respect. His tireless efforts to increase diversity and inclusion are a lesson to many and something we are committed to at F1," the statement read.
Shortly after, Mercedes posted a statement on their social media account.
It read: “We condemn in the strongest terms any use of racist or discriminatory language of any kind. Lewis has spearheaded our sport’s efforts to combat racism, and he is a true champion of diversity on and off track.
“Together, we share a vision for a diverse and inclusive motorsport, and this incident underlines the fundamental importance of continuing to strive for a brighter future.”
Red Bull terminate Juri Vips' contract after racist remark
Red Bull have terminated the contract of their test and reserve driver, Juri Vips, just hours after Hamilton's response to Piquet.
Vips was concluded to have made a racist comment, after being suspended while under investigation. He made the remark while live streaming himself playing video games.
F1 facing major racism questions
In the days leading up to the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the issue of racism within Formula 1 is sure to be the main topic.
Both Hamilton and Red Bull have found themselves at the centre of separate issues on the same day.
Verstappen’s girlfriend’s father labelled Hamilton a racist name, before his team terminated the contract of Vips who also made a racist remark.
It is particularly poignant timing given that both incidents happened in the build-up to Hamilton’s home race - the seven-time world champion from Britain has always been an advocate for social change whose influence extends far beyond the race track.
His words on issues of race and social change will perhaps never be more powerful than when he addresses the media at Silverstone on Thursday.
