“What he said isn’t nearly as blatant” – Red Bull chief questions timings of Nelson Piquet racism scandal

Samriddhi Jaiswal | 28/07/2022
"What he said isn’t nearly as blatant" - Red Bull chief questions timings of Nelson Piquet racism scandal

Red Bull chief Helmut Marko tries to defend Nelson Piquet following the latter’s racist comments on Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull chief Helmut Marko has questioned the timing of the outburst of Nelson Piquet’s racist comments on Lewis Hamilton ahead of the British GP.

Marko has accused the Mercedes team of trying to divert the attention from the 2021 British GP crash by bringing up Piquet’s old interview.

The 79-year-old Red Bull chief said, “I don’t want to defend Piquet, but if you translate Portuguese correctly, what he said isn’t nearly as blatant.”

Ahead of the 2022 British GP, an old interview of the triple world champion surfaced on the internet. He used racial slurs and homophobic comments to describe Hamilton.

It immediately caught fire and turned into a massive controversy. Piquet also became subject to lifetime F1 bans and criminal prosecutions.

Marko further defended Piquet and said, “But we know Piquet. Even when he was active, he always made ill-considered statements.

“The only odd thing is that this interview from last November surfaced a few days before the British GP.”

He accused the Brackley-based team of covering up last year’s contentious crash between Max Verstappen and Hamilton. Marko said, “This timing is no coincidence.”

Also Read: When and Where to watch Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix Main Race?

Red Bull chief says everything becomes political with Mercedes

Marko also backed Red Bull team principal Christian Horner’s statement that the title battle with Ferrari is much smoother than with Mercedes in 2021. The 79-year-old insisted, “With Mercedes, everything always becomes political.”

Furthermore, he opined that this year’s battle with Ferrari is more enjoyable. Marko also expressed sympathy for the Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc following his heartbreaking DNF at the French Grand Prix last weekend.

Speaking about the Red Bull vs Ferrari battle, the Red Bull chief said, “We meet on an equal footing in terms of sport. It’s just a shame that Leclerc and Ferrari keep making mistakes in their battles with us.”

Also Read: Everything you need to know about Hungaroring ahead of 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix

Post Edited By: Samriddhi Jaiswal
Helmut Marko Lewis Hamilton Nelson Piquet Red Bull

About the author

Samriddhi Jaiswal

Samriddhi Jaiswal is an F1 editor and writer at The SportsRush. She started her career as a business journalist but soon found her calling in lights out here we go! Samriddhi has been a Ferrari fan even when her interaction with F1 was occasional. Her first real experience with the thrilling sport came when Charles Leclerc clinched his iconic victory in Spa and Monza and painted the track red. Now, a Tifosi, Samriddhi is a hardcore fan of the prancing horse and can relate to the chaos within the Italian camp and also admires Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. Off the track, she finds her home in books and musical instruments.

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