Former Jaguar and Williams Formula 1 driver Antonio Pizzonia was arrested in the United States after an alleged assault at a karting track in Texas, where he was present to watch his son compete
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Antonio Pizzonia raced 20 times in F1 for Jaguar and Williams(Image: AFP)
A former Formula 1 driver was arrested in the US following an alleged assault. Video footage circulating on social media captured ex-racer Antonio Pizzonia, who previously drove for Jaguar and Williams in F1, involved in a confrontation with another bloke at a racing event in Texas on Saturday.
TMZ reports that Pizzonia was taken into custody at a local jail around 6pm following his arrest. Montgomery County Police released a mugshot of the Brazilian before he was subsequently let go, having paid for his bail, according to Brazilian media.
The alleged incident occurred at a karting circuit where Pizzonia had turned up to support his son, Antonio Pizzonia Neto, who was racing. Video clips shared online show a man gesturing and pointing his finger at a young driver wearing a helmet – thought to be Pizzonia’s son – from behind a metal fence.
That individual then gets walloped with a flying kick from Pizzonia, who suddenly appears in shot, before landing a punch with his right fist. Onlookers managed to pull the pair apart, though this didn’t stop the former F1 driver from being arrested.
Following his release, the 45-year-old took to Instagram to address the incident: “Everyone, I’m okay and I’m back at home. Indeed there was an incident to which, today, I would have reacted in a different way.
“I understood at that moment that my son, a child, was being coerced by an adult and instinctively I defended him. Thank you to everyone for your messages of support.” Pizzonia has also shared several videos on his story, showing him playing with his daughter at home.
Now 45, he has continued to race beyond his brief F1 career, which lasted three seasons from 2003 to 2005. He made his debut with Jaguar, racing alongside Mark Webber but was dropped after 12 Grands Prix, having failed to score a point.
He was kept on as a test driver by Williams and raced four times in 2004 in place of the injured Ralf Schumacher, earning six points. Pizzonia remained a reserve for 2005 but again got opportunities to drive, racing five more times for Williams and adding two more points to his career total.
However, he did not secure a permanent race seat for 2006, with the team choosing to sign newly-crowned GP2 champion Nico Rosberg, a future F1 champion with Mercedes.
After that, Pizzonia raced a few times in GP2 himself but primarily participated in motorsport events in his homeland. He competed in the Brazilian Stock Car championship over many years, though recently returned to Europe for the BOSS GP Racing series, where he won the Open Class title in 2023 and 2024.