Of course this was offensive to many.Who ever signed that off is fucking stupid beyond belief. This type of shite has no place in sport full stop including motorcycle racing.Im not Japanese but looking at the t shirt and helmet it is blatantly obvious to anyone involved in sport what is wrong with it. I guess this is why I love the ethos of Martial Arts so much as its all about respect and everyone is a equal regardless of race,culture,ethnicity rich or poor etc etc.
Not you as well, Matt..? Listen guys, whether it was distasteful or not, I guarantee you that no-one in Honda's management, or Marquez' management, knew anything about that t-shirt until the photos were tweeted. It may not even have been anything to do with the team; japanese racegoers are well known to love giving gifts to the racers, it may have come from a punter. It may have come from Shoei, given the brand advertising. It could have come from anywhere. But I'll guarantee you it wasn't 'signed off' by anyone.
Fair enough Figaro.Signing off may have been the wrong wording in this case. I guess what the riders should do is check all is ok with management or team bosses first before making the mistake of wearing anything that may be deemed offensive to some. I guess the young Marques didn't understand the offense this may cause hense better to check with others with more worldwide or cultural knowledge.
He's a young lad, I've no doubt he found the t-shirt hilarious, every bit as funny as the guy who dreamt it up thought it would be. We all make mistakes, it's part of life's rich tapestry. But it's hardly crime of the century, I'm utterly amazed it's had as much airtime here as it's had. A momentary faux pas, nothing else.
