Pink Bull Racing marketing consultant Helmut Marko has needed to apologize for racist remarks geared toward F1 driver Sergio Pérez. Throughout an interview after final week’s Italian Grand Prix, Helmut Marko stated Checo’s efficiency was because of his “cultural heritage,” per the BBC, and the 80-year previous Pink Bull advisor went on to unfavorably examine Checo’s Mexican nationality to that of a German or a Dutchman.

Not solely did Marko have the gall in charge Checo’s efficiency on being Mexican, however he was confidently incorrect when describing the F1 driver’s origin, implying the Mexican pilot is from South America, which is, uh, fallacious.

Marko went on to say, “We all know that he has issues in qualifying, he has fluctuations in kind, he’s South American and he’s simply not as utterly centered in his head as Max [Verstappen] is or as Sebastian [Vettel]” because the Guardian reviews.

And when Marko tried to stroll again his statements later, he solely made it worse, in line with the BBC:

The Austrian web site www.oe24.at reported him as saying: “It wasn’t meant that means. I meant {that a} Mexican has a distinct mentality than a German or a Dutchman. However who is aware of, perhaps it’s managed.”

Perez and Verstappen shared two wins every within the first 4 races of the season, after which Perez was speaking about difficult for the world title.

That is reportedly not the primary time that Helmut Marko has incorrectly stated that Checo is from South America. However the factor is Sergio Pérez was born in Guadalajara, which is the capital of Jalisco, one in every of Mexico’s extra readily acknowledged states.

Guadalajara is a serious metropolis. Hell, it’s the topic of a well-known tune named after the capital metropolis, which has been carried out by well-known Mexicans corresponding to Vicente Fernandez, AKA ’Chente. You’d suppose an advisor to Pink Bull’s Method 1 crew would know the place his crew’s drivers are from.

However, no. Helmut Marko is beneath the impression that Mexicans are from South America, regardless of Mexico being a part of the North American continent, and, subsequently, by definition, making Sergio Pérez a North American — the identical as any F1 driver from the U.S. or Canada. Nobody’s bothered to right Marko till now, it appears, prompting the 80-year previous to situation the next assertion:

Regarding my comment about Sergio Perez, ServusTV Sport and Discuss, Monday September 4: I wish to apologise for my offensive comment and wish to make it completely clear that I don’t consider that we will generalise concerning the folks from any nation, any race, any ethnicity. I used to be making an attempt to make a degree that Checo has fluctuated in his efficiency this yr, but it surely was fallacious to attribute this to his cultural heritage.

Discover that Marko makes no point out of the factual error he dedicated. That’s, his remarks have been initially racist, and, second, simply plain fallacious.