‘A bad joke’ - Ferrari F1 boss Mattia Binotto apologises for Yuki Tsunoda ‘tsunami’ comment
Referring to the amount of accidents Tsunoda has been involved in following his retirement at the Dutch Grand Prix, Binotto labelled Tsunoda as a “tsunami” in an interview with Italy’s Gazzetta dello Sport.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, Binotto issued an apology for his comment, which caused offence in Japan. The country’s north-eastern coastal communities were devastated by a 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunami in 2011, which claimed the lives of nearly 16,000 people.
“Certainly I need to apologise and it was a mistake by using that word,” said Binotto.
“It was no intention to do any anything wrong and very close to the victims which I honestly I realised.
“I think that Tsunoda is a fantastic driver, is a great man and we've got a good relationship between the two [of us]. And that's a way that we simply call him in a way, to… as you said, it's a simple joke, but it's a bad joke.”
Tsunoda has picked up a 10-place grid penalty for this weekend’s grand prix after reaching five reprimands during the 2022 season.
He was issued a further three-place grid penalty after failing to slow for yellow flags during Friday practice, and is now just four penalty points away from a race ban.
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