Increasing call for Marko to resign at Red Bull after offensive comments

The Red Bull Racing offices remain fairly quiet. While advisor Helmut Marko himself has apologised for his hurtful comments about Mexicans, the team of Max Verstappen and his Mexican teammate Sergio Perez remains silent. In the run-up to the Singapore Grand Prix, the matter is lurking, and there are calls for Red Bull to sack Marko with immediate effect.

On the Sport und Talk programme on ServusTV, Marko stated that Perez was suffering from "form fluctuations" and that this might just have something to do with his "South American heritage". This prompted a storm of criticism from the Red Bull advisor. Not only would his comments be generalising, but Mexico is part of North America.

After the statements caused a stir, Marko released a statement. The Austrian revealed, "I want to apologise for my insulting remark and want to make it absolutely clear that I do not believe we can generalise people from any country, race or ethnicity. I was trying to make it clear that Checo's performance this year has been mixed, but it was wrong to attribute this to his cultural origin. I would like to formally apologise for that."

Red Bull Racing has not (yet) made anything public about Marko's remarks. A complicating factor is that Marko is not officially under contract to Red Bull Racing but to Red Bull. When asked, a Red Bull Racing spokesman told GPblog that no statement will be made, but added: "Christian Horner will address the media in Singapore."

Not everyone has been able to put the story to bed after Marko's apology. Online petitions have started to get Red Bull Racing to say goodbye to Marko. According to Mexican sports newspaper Esto, one of the petitions has now been signed more than 25,000 times. Incidentally, the same source questions why the FIA doesn't intervene. According to Esto, the global motorsport federation is usually an outspoken advocate against racism and equality but does not openly disapprove of Marko's words.

Mexico isn't the only place calling for a resignation. The major German newspaper Der Westen - which has its distribution area in the Ruhr - also makes its stance clear: "Get out! Red Bull has no choice - and must react immediately," is the headline of the article. Next, Der Westen refers to an incident involving Juri Vips, who was sacked by Red Bull a year ago for using the n-word. At the time, Red Bull pointed to a zero-tolerance policy in place.

"Now the race team has to prove that they mean business. This time, it is not about a minor talent from the academy but one of the leading people. Motorsport director Helmut Marko, the strong man at Red Bull behind Christian Horner, caused a scandal with a racist remark. If the team is consistent, dismissal may be the only result," the newspaper writes.

Der Westen concluded, "Zero tolerance actually leaves no wiggle room."