MPs accuse Nelson Piquet of racial crime after former F1 star’s vile abuse of Lewis Hamilton ahead of British Grand Prix
THREE Brazilian MPs have accused Nelson Piquet of committing a racial crime and asked a court to probe him over his N-word slur against Lewis Hamilton.
The politicians say they want the former F1 world champion charged over his controversial comments.
Aurea Carolina, Taliria Petrone and Vivi Reis, MPs for the left-wing Socialism and Liberty Party, have lodged a formal complaint with prosecutors in the capital Brasilia.
Petrone, a former teacher who has spent her political career representing Rio de Janeiro, said: “Racism, which structures our society, needs to be fought everywhere.”
The MPs added in their complaint: “Treating black human beings in a clearly pejorative way, as Mr Nelson Piquet does, goes against practices for implementing equality.”
Specialist lawyer Renan Gandolfi told local press Piquet could now face a criminal probe for using racial slurs and a prison sentence of up to three years plus a fine if convicted.
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Prosecutors in Brasilia have yet to comment and it was not immediately clear yesterday if the complaint would be acted upon and a court investigation leading to possible charges launched.
Piquet was banned from Silverstone earlier this week after using a racially offensive expression in Portuguese to describe Hamilton during an interview in his homeland.
The retired three-time world champion apologised and insisted the word he used was mistranslated before it emerged he had called him the N-word again.
Leading F1 figures including 2009 world champion Jenson Button and respected commentator Martin Brundle have voiced their disgust over the language Piquet used.
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Apologising for using the derogatory term while referring to seven-time world champion Hamilton in a podcast interview last year, Piquet said: “What I said was ill-thought out, and I make no defence for it.
“But I will clarify that the term used is one that has widely and historically been used colloquially in Brazilian Portuguese as a synonym for ‘guy’ or ‘person’ and was never intended to offend.”
Piquet is the father of Max Verstappen‘s girlfriend, Kelly.
Hamilton’s rival criticised the three-time F1 champion’s use of the language but insists he’s far from a racist.
The Dutchman said: “Everyone is against racism and I think that’s very straight. The wording that was used was not correct.
“But I’ve spent a bit of time with Nelson, more than the average person, and he’s definitely not a racist. He’s actually a really nice, relaxed guy.
“It’s not about the n-word, it’s about using offensive language in general.
“But he doesn’t need me to tell him what is right and what isn’t. He already said in his statement, he used the wrong words.
“It can be interpreted in two ways, people pick up on the bad side, and then of course it gets really blown out of proportion.
“It’s better to open a conversation instead of banning. When you ban people, you’re actually not even helping the situation.
“You’re not talking. You need to communicate and communication is really important. You’re trying to educate people, so it’s better to have a chat and these things can be easily solved.
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“When you have a fight and you insult someone, you have a chat, you apologise. With this it’s exactly the same.
“Things can be easily forgotten – as long as you learn from your mistake and the word that you used. I don’t think you should be banned from the paddock. Especially not a three-time world champion.”