F1 Podium Celebration Forces Petronas CEO To Apologize For Champagne Spray

Last weekend in Singapore was a big one for Mercedes as George Russell dominated the race from lights to flag, and it was also a big weekend for their title sponsor and fuel partner, Malaysian oil and gas giant Petronas.

However, the podium festivities got the company's CEO in some trouble back in his home country.

Petronas supplies fuel for Mercedes and all teams that use Mercedes power units, and has been involved in Formula 1, MotoGP, and other series for years. They were the title sponsor of the Malaysian Grand Prix until that race left the calendar in 2017, and that has made Singapore their de facto home race.

So, that's why when Mercedes won the Grand Prix, Petronas President and CEO Tengku Muhammad Taufik Tengku Aziz was on the podium to accept the constructors' trophy and get in on the champagne celebration.

And therein lies the problem…

Malaysia is predominantly Muslim, and it's the country's official religion. One thing that is generally frowned upon in Islamic nations is booze. In fact, F1 races in a few of them, and you'll often see teams remove alcohol sponsors from cars and even drivers' helmets. Then, on the podium, the champagne gets replaced with rosewater. That's always super obvious, since it doesn't fire out of the bottle like Old Faithful the way champagne does.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team driver George Russell celebrates on the podium with Petronas President and CEO Tengku Muhammad Taufik Tengku Aziz after winning the SIngapoire Grand Prix. (Photo by Wan Mikhail Roslan/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

CEO Issues Understandable Apology For Living Out Every Racing Fan's Dream

This display of post-race champagne spraying got the CEO some heat back home. So much so that he had to offer an apology.

"I acknowledge that my spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment exuberance in celebrating that moment of victory may have been misplaced," Aziz said in a statement, per New Straits Times (via Channel News Asia). "While I can categorically state I did not consume any alcohol, as a Muslim, I should have been more aware of the sensitivities associated with taking part in such celebrations.

"Accordingly, I want to apologize for any unintended offense caused and take full responsibility for my actions."

I get the need to apologize due to cultural sensitivities and keeping the business running… but how do you turn down spraying champagne on an F1 podium?

You don't. 

It's not something you get to do every day, and if popping a cork means having an underling write a groveling apology, well, that's the price of success.