 Red Bull chief Helmut Marko says he does not want to discuss his controversial comments on Sergio Perez, saying he 'will only talk about sporting matters' from now on. Last week, Marko yet again found himself in hot water after making xenophobic comments toward his own driver following the Italian Grand Prix. The 80-year-old said: 'Let's remember that he [Perez] is South American and so his head is not as focused as Max Verstappen or as Sebastian Vettel was.' As well as incorrectly stereotyping an entire continent, his words drew criticism for the simple fact that Perez is from Mexico which is of course in North America. Initially, Marko, the head of Red Bull's driver development programme, refused to apologise, instead doubling down on his remarks by saying: 'I meant that a Mexican has a different mentality than a German or a Dutchman.' But eventually, he did say sorry: 'I would like to apologise for my offensive remark and want to make it absolutely clear that I do not believe that we can generalise about the people from any country, any race, any ethnicity. 'I was trying to make a point that Checo (Perez) has fluctuated in his performance this year, but it was wrong to attribute this to his cultural heritage.' Marko has made several derogatory comments about Sergio Perez in the past (Photo: Getty) Marko is infamous for making derogatory comments towards drivers both in the Red Bull family and elsewhere on the grid, and there is a growing feeling among fans that action must be taken against him. Perez and Red Bull are yet to comment on the matter publicly, though it will surely a big topic of discussion in the build-up to this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix. However, Marko claims he has no plans to comment further on the controversy, telling German publication F1-Insider: 'If there are questions about that, I won't answer them. I will only talk about sporting matters.' Red Bull can win the constructo){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Red Bull chief Helmut Marko says he does not want to discuss his controversial comments on Sergio Perez, saying he ‘will only talk about sporting matters’ from now on.
Last week, Marko yet again found himself in hot water after making xenophobic comments toward his own driver following the Italian Grand Prix.
The 80-year-old said: ‘Let’s remember that he [Perez] is South American and so his head is not as focused as Max Verstappen or as Sebastian Vettel was.’
As well as incorrectly stereotyping an entire continent, his words drew criticism for the simple fact that Perez is from Mexico which is of course in North America.