Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas has played down the use of swear words by Max Verstappen amid the FIA’s potential blackout on Formula 1 in-car radio broadcasts.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has revealed that the sport’s governing body was not ruling out taking that route in a bid to clamp down on expletive language.
“Do we go on and then shut down the radios of live communications? Maybe. Do we delay it? Maybe,” he was quoted at an FIA officials summit.
Verstappen was the first F1 driver to be penalised under the reworded International Sporting Code when he swore in a press conference in Singapore last season.
Nicholas, who has been with Red Bull since 2015, has said the team is accepting on Verstappen’s occasionally acrimonious tone during races, given he is talking in the middle of a high-pressure race.
“When we hear drivers on the radio, in the midst of a race, in the midst of a battle, their language can be colourful,” he told talkSPORT.
“I think the important thing to remember is that they are operating in that window where they’re under a great deal of pressure.
“We never sit in the garage and hear those comments and think to myself ‘Oh God, I can’t believe he’s being mean to us.’
“That’s not really the nature of the people that work in sport.”
Parents have ‘responsibility’ to teach young F1 fans right from wrong
Ben Sulayem has made the point that drivers, on show in front of a huge global TV audience, put them in a position of influence for the younger generation.
However, Nicholas has intimated that provided children watching the coverage on TV are guided correctly, nothing needs to be changed.
“Sometimes when people are using colourful language in the garage, there’s smiles while they’re doing it,” he added. “It doesn’t necessarily tell you the mood. It’s just a word.
“It’s something that I tell my daughter quite often. I have a six-year-old daughter, and I say to her, ‘Look, you know, there’s language that’s appropriate in some situations and not in others.’
“And I think a lot of times people say, Oh, well, these stars, they have a responsibility as role models. And I sort of say, well, for me actually, as a parent, I think that responsibility is mine to teach my kids what’s appropriate in some environments and what’s not appropriate in other environments.
“I think that as a parent, you should take that responsibility on yourself, rather than expect everybody else to be your role model.”
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