Ralf Schumacher breaks his silence after alleged homophobic feedback made by Sergio Perez’s father amid ongoing feud with heartbroken ex-wife

Ralf Schumacher has broken his silence after Sergio Perez‘s father appeared to make comments poking fun at his sexuality.

Schumacher, 49, formerly a Williams driver in Formula One, came out as gay in July by posting a picture of himself alongside his French business manager Etienne Bousquet-Cassagne.

The news spelled the end of his marriage with reality TV star Cora Schumacher, 47, whom he was married to for 13 years between 2001 and 2014.

While the brother of seven-time world champion Michael is now embroiled in a feud with Cora, he largely received a torrent of positive messages in the aftermath of his announcement, including from his close friend German actress Carmen Geiss.

However, Antonio Perez Garibay seemingly made negative remarks toward Schumacher’s sexual orientation while responding to criticism made by the pundit on Sky Germany.

‘There is a driver who was a Formula 1 driver, [turned] journalist. He first stated that Checo was already out of Red Bull,’ Perez’s father told Mexican media. ‘The following week, [Schumacher] came out of the closet.

‘I don’t know if he was in love with Checo. Do you understand it? There are many strange things. 

‘You no longer know if he is a journalist, a woman, a gentleman. But his opinion does not matter, not because of Checo Perez, but because of what his [ex-]wife said about him.’ 

Perez has been under much scrutiny due to his poor performances in the Red Bull this season as he sits eighth in the driver’s standings.

The Mexican star is still without a win this campaign going into the final three races of the season and his lack of form has attributed to the Austrian racing team’s fall to third place in the constructor standings.

As it looks like Red Bull are set to fail in their pursuit of retaining their title, calls for Perez to be moved on have got louder, despite the fact he signed a new deal earlier this season. 

And following Perez Garibay’s remark, Schumacher has taken to social media to insist he is not angry with the Red Bull driver’s father. 

‘I would also stand behind my son 100 percent and try to help,’ Schumacher wrote on Instagram. ‘That is what you do as a father. As for the style, I would be different but we know Mr. Perez with all his emotions. 

‘That is why I am not angry with him. However, I believe that results on the track would be the better argument.’ 

Perez Garibay’s comments regarding Cora seemed to be referencing the fact the model and former racer said she ‘felt used’ and had ‘wasted her best years’ after finding out the news of Schumacher’s homosexuality.

She also revealed that she was not aware of her ex-husband’s relationship with Bousquet-Cassagne until seeing it via social media, while she also believes she was psychologically manipulated by Schumacher.

In response to his ex-wife, the six-time F1 Grand Prix winner insisted he had always been faithful to Cora and that if he had wanted a child he could have achieved this by other means than getting married.

He added that she seemed to be the only person taking issue with his relationship update. According to Geiss, Ralf has been with 34-year-old Etienne for two years, having met him in Monaco. 

Ralf and Cora were still believed to be close as he congratulated her on joining the cast of the German version of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! in January.

She is a German actress, model, former racing driver, and television presenter. In addition, she is also on OnlyFans, an adult platform.