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Manchester United defender Raphael Varane has offered his support to F1 icon Lewis Hamilton after it emerged he was racially abused by former world champion Nelson Piquet.
According to The Guardian, Piquet used the racially aggravated insult towards Hamilton in an interview that was conducted last year, but was released to the public earlier this week.
Hamilton currently holds a joint-record with Michael Schumacher for seven F1 world titles. He has been incredibly vocal throughout his career when it comes to black rights and minority representation across all sports.
The Brit was furious upon hearing Piquet's remarks, as he tweeted:
"It’s more than language. These archaic mindsets need to change and have no place in our sport. I’ve been surrounded by these attitudes and targeted my whole life. There has been plenty of time to learn. Time has come for action."
Arsenal supporter Hamilton was then shown support by Manchester United star Varane. The Frenchman agreed with the legendary driver's statement that racism has no place in any sport. The 29-year-old replied on Twitter:
"There is no place for racism in any sport, industry or walk of life. Lewis, continue to shine the great light that you do. I stand with you."
Varane joined Manchester United from Real Madrid last summer. However, he was restricted to 29 appearances across the campaign due to numerous injury problems.
Arsenal star sends support to Lewis Hamilton as Nelson Piquet widely condemned for racist comments
According to The Manchester Evening News, three-time world champion Piquet has claimed that the slur in question was used as a joke. However, that has not stopped the wider sporting world from condemning the Brazilian driver.
Arsenal's Nuno Tavares also joined Manchester United's Varane in support of the driver. The defender at Hamilton's beloved Arsenal, tweeted his disgust at Piquet's comments as he posted the following:
Formula 1, which has a zero-tolerance policy on racism and discriminatory behaviour of any kind, released a statement which read:
“Discriminatory or racist language is unacceptable in any form and has no part in society. Lewis is an incredible ambassador for our sport and deserves respect. His tireless efforts to increase diversity and inclusion are a lesson to many and something we are committed to at F1.”
Meanwhile, Hamilton's team Mercedes tweeted:
"We condemn in the strongest terms any use of racist or discriminatory language of any kind. Lewis has spearheaded our sport's efforts to combat racism, and he is a true champion of diversity on and off track. Together, we share a vision for a diverse and inclusive motorsport, and this incident underlines the fundamental importance of continuing to strive for a brighter future."
