World champion Max Verstappen insists Nelson Piquet is not a racist and believes it is wrong to expel him from Formula 1.
Verstappen, whose girlfriend Kelly Piquet is the daughter of the three-time Brazilian world champion, has also claimed that the offensive statements – which have overshadowed the preparation for this weekend’s British Grand Prix – have been disproportionate.
Piquet, 69, apologized to Hamilton on Wednesday, but said the term – which he used when describing the British driver’s first-lap collision with Verstappen at Silverstone last year – was translated bad.
“Everyone is against racism and I think it’s very clear,” Verstappen said. ‘The wording used was incorrect.
“But I’ve spent some time with Nelson, more than the average person, and he’s definitely not a racist. In fact, he’s a very nice, relaxed guy.
“It’s not about the word n, it’s about using offensive language in general.
F1 world champion Max Verstappen has insisted that Nelson Piquet (pictured above) is not a racist
Verstappen believes that banning Piquet, despite his racial insult against Lewis Hamilton, is wrong
“Made Dirty at Verstappen”: Piquet’s Comments on Hamilton
Nelson Piquet described the incident as a “joke” on the podcast and said Hamilton had been “lucky” that Verstappen was just crashing.
He told Motorsport Talks: “The neguinho put the car wrong and didn’t leave it [the other driver swerve].
‘The neguinho put the car wrong in the corner, it’s because you don’t know the curve.
‘It’s a very high curve, there’s no way to pass two cars and there’s no way to leave the car aside.
‘He did it [Verstappen] dirty. His luck was that only the other had disappeared.
“But he doesn’t need me to tell him what’s right and what’s not.
‘He already said in his statement, he used the wrong words.
“It can be interpreted in two ways, people perceive the bad side and then, of course, it is disproportionate.”
It is understood that Piquet, who won the World Cup in 1981, 1983 and 1987, will not be welcomed back into the paddock.
Earlier on Thursday, the British Racing Drivers’ Club, owner of Silverstone, announced it was suspending Piquet’s membership with the aim of terminating his association at a board meeting next week.
A statement said: “In view of the BRDC’s zero tolerance policy towards any act involving or suggesting racism, the BRDC Board has concluded that Mr Piquet Sr’s use of racially offensive language to describe a member of the BRDC (and seven-time world champion) is unacceptable and represents totally inappropriate conduct for an honorary member of the BRDC, despite his subsequent apology.
“Consequently, we have informed Mr. Mr. Piquet that his membership has been suspended with immediate effect.
Piquet apologized for the derogatory comment addressed to Hamilton, but said it had been mistranslated
The former driver had been discussing an incident between Red Bull’s Verstappen and Hamilton, pictured, at last year’s British Grand Prix, when they collided on the first lap.
“Following the due process of the Club, it is anticipated that the Board will terminate membership in Mr. Piquet Sr. at a Board meeting to be held after the required seven-day notice period.”
But Verstappen, who has a 46-point lead in the championship, added: “It’s better to open a conversation than to ban. When you ban people, you’re not really helping the situation.
‘You’re not talking. You need to communicate and communication is very important. You’re trying to educate people, so it’s best to have a talk and these things can be easily resolved.
“When you have a fight and you insult someone, you talk, you apologize. With that it’s exactly the same.
Verstappen says it’s “better to open a conversation” than to ban Piquet from the paddock
Hamilton described the insult as “archaic” and also insisted that “the time for action has come.”
“Things can be easily forgotten, as long as you learn from your mistake and the word you used. I don’t think they should ban you in the paddock. Especially not three-time world champion.”
Asked if he had spoken to Piquet, the 24-year-old Dutch driver replied: ‘It’s not up to me to talk to my father-in-law.
“For none of you, oh, you won’t call and say,‘ Hey man, that’s not right. ’He knows it himself.
Questioning Senna’s sexuality and harassing Mansell and his wife: Piquet’s previous controversies
Former racing driver Piquet has previously made a number of nasty comments about his F1 teammates.
He publicly questioned Ayrton Senna’s sexuality at the time they were fighting and called his rival “the taxi driver from Sao Paulo.”
He also made offensive comments about Nigel Mansell and the Briton’s wife when they were teammates at Williams.
The Brazilian gave an infamous interview to Playboy about his then-teammate, calling Mansell “an uneducated busty”.
Piquet also resorted to derogatory insults about Mansell’s wife who later apologized when he was threatened with legal action.