The Formula One pundit who made a classless joke about Michael Schumacher’s condition has blamed jet lag in his apology message.
![MICHAEL Schumacher - Figure 1](https://i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk/incoming/article31034122.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/0_F1-Grand-Prix-of-Spain-Final-Practice.jpg)
Seven-time F1 world champion Schumacher has not been in the public eye since his life-changing skiing accident almost a decade ago. The legendary German driver was left requiring round-the-clock care from family and medical staff after hitting his head on a rock back in December 2013.
Little else is known about Schumacher’s current state, aside from his son Mick suggesting he is unable to communicate with the 54-year-old. But the racing hero was brought up on a live broadcast on Spanish television after the Japanese Grand Prix, with journalist Antonio Lobato aiming a callous comment at him.
READ MORE: Horrid Michael Schumacher comment made on live TV as F1 fans demand pundit apologises
READ MORE: Michael Schumacher's son Mick could land new role for 2024 after losing F1 seat
The shocking moment, which has since gone viral, saw a colleague say: "Let [Red Bull chief technical officer] Adrian Newey be shaking because Antonio Lobato is coming." To which Lobato responded: "Let Michael be shaking! Well... not Michael, he cannot shake."
![MICHAEL Schumacher - Figure 2](https://i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk/incoming/article30943597.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/2_FILE-Former-F1-Driver-Michael-Schumacher-Hurt-In-Skiing-Accident.jpg)
Lobato has now responded to the uproar by making an apology video. He took to social media to admit he was wrong to make light of the situation but offered a bizarre excuse.
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"I think it is necessary to explain and admit that I was wrong, Please listen to my video,” his caption read. “It's a little long, but I think it's necessary."
Lobato then said in the video: "I made a mistake without any bad intentions. It was simply a mistake of pure clumsiness, of pure inability to express myself correctly, maybe because of too many hours up, jet lag in Madrid, or whatever – which is not an excuse for those of you who didn't see it.
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![MICHAEL Schumacher - Figure 3](https://i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk/incoming/article30976634.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/0_tnt.jpg)
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Amazon"What happened is that I went too far and made an expression that is not good, it is not accurate, it is not fine. I didn't mean to make a joke, I didn't mean to make fun of Michael Schumacher. I think that everyone who knows me and knows what I'm like knows perfectly well that I would never make a joke about something like that. Never, but I was clumsy."
There has been much demand for updates surrounding Schumacher’s health since his accident. The German’s 2021 Netflix documentary offered little news, while his former team-mate Johnny Herbert recently said: "There's never any news. What we do know is we never hear any positive news... And that is very sad."