‘Unacceptable’: Nelson Piquet under fire for racist epithet about Lewis Hamilton

Formula One and the Mercedes team have condemned the three-time world champion Nelson Piquet for using racist language when speaking about Lewis Hamilton. Piquet used the term in an interview that was conducted last year but which was released publicly on Monday night. F1 has a commitment to oppose racism and encourage diversity in the sport.

Piquet was speaking in November to Motorsport Talk’s Ricardo Oliveira in Portuguese about Hamilton’s clash with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix in 2021, which ended with the Dutch driver going off the track and suffering a major impact with the barriers.

The video of the interview was picked up by Brazilian media including CNN, which reported his words as he referred to the incident. He used the epithet “neguinho” which can translate as “nigger” or “little black man” and in context appears clearly intended in derogatory terms in describing Hamilton.

“The neguinho put the car in the wrong way on the corner,” he said. “It’s because you don’t know the curve. It’s a very high curve, there is no way to pass two cars and there’s no way you can put the car aside. He did [Verstappen] dirty. His luck was that only the other one was gone.”

F1, which has a clear anti-racist platform under the We Race As One banner, swiftly condemned Piquet. It issued a statement that read: “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.”

Hamilton’s Mercedes team, who have supported the seven-time champion’s outspoken efforts to promote anti-racism and diversity,