ESPN journalist accuses Sergio Perez of ‘making his son cry’

Sergio Perez

Journalist accuses Sergio Perez of ‘making his son cry’

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Monday 10 April 2023 10:00

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Sergio Perez has been criticised by an ESPN journalist for refusing to take a picture with the man's son after a meal.

Miguel Gonzalez took to Twitter to call out the Mexican driver, saying that his son had been left in tears after their interaction – although he admitted that Perez had every right to deny the request.

For his part, Perez told Gonzalez 'no' because he was out for a meal with his family – and is yet to respond publicly to the criticism.

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"Thanks to @SChecoPerez for ignoring and turning your back on my son when you were leaving the restaurant," he tweeted. "Incredulous, I approached you to ask if you could take a picture with him and you declined, saying that you came with your family. This time the tears you provoked were not from emotion."

Mixed reactions and apology

"The child waited for them to finish and leave so as not to be impertinent," he continued. "What a pity it bothers you when a child asks you for a photo, although you have every right to deny it @SChecoPerez. By the way, the garbage on the table is collected. Education is also taught and learned as a family."

El niño esperó a que terminaran y salieran para no ser impertinente, qué pena que te moleste que un niño te pida una foto, aunque estás en todo tu derecho de negarla @SChecoPerez
Por cierto la basura de la mesa se recoge. La educación también se enseña y se aprende en familia.
— Miguel González (@mg_michel) April 8, 2023

The reaction to Gonzalez's tweets was mixed, to say the least. The story drew thousands of replies on the website, and a large number of comments when posted on Reddit – with F1 fans split between calling Gonzalez classless for tweeting about the interaction, and Perez classless for saying no to the picture.

Gonzalez subsequently apologised, tweeting: "Today I have to offer a sincere apology to @SChecoPerez… I insist that he is within his rights. My reaction was wrong. Sincere apology."