Red Bull reserve driver Juri Vips has been fired by his team after an investigation into a video showed him racist language during a live game stream.
The team released a statement confirming it had terminated 21-year-old Est’s deal after he was heard saying the N-word during an online gaming session he was streaming live.
Red Bull’s announcement came just hours after a separate racism rage erupted in the sport over three-time world champion Nelson Piquet calling Lewis Hamilton a “neguiho”.
Vips, who also competes in Formula 2 and played a part in the first free practice of the Spanish Grand Prix, was withdrawn from all team duties last week pending an investigation.
Red Bull said on Tuesday that the probe was now complete and the team has now terminated Vip’s contract as a test and reserve driver. “The team does not condone racism of any kind,” it said in a statement.
Vips became the first Estonian driver to take part in a Formula 1 race weekend in May when he took over from Sergio Perez in the Red Bull RB18 during the first practice session in Barcelona.
At this point, in his third F2 season with the British Hitech GP team, he had issued a statement via his Instagram account apologizing for his “unacceptable” language.
He said: “I want to apologize unconditionally for the offensive language used during a live game stream earlier today.
“This language is completely unacceptable and does not reflect the values and principles I adhere to. I deeply regret my actions and this is not the example I want to set. I will fully cooperate with the investigation.”
Vips joined the Red Bull Junior program in November 2018 and as part of his role, he took part in the 2020 End of Season Young Drivers’ Test in Abu Dhabi and was a designated reserve driver at several races for both Red Bull as sister team to Alpha Tauri.
Piquet also faces potential sanctions if he does not apologize to Hamilton for his separate racist outburst. As a former title winner, Piquet will be allowed all season entry, but his privileges are now under serious threat after he twice used the derogatory Portuguese phrase “neguiho” while discussing Hamilton.
The seven-time world champion had previously described racist attitudes he had faced during his time in the sport, adding that Piquet’s “archaic mindset” “has no place in our sport.