He narrowly avoided jail time, the court heard.

Patrick Stuart Lees, 20, pleaded guilty to the two offences, though he said he did not remember the incident, which happened at about 2am on November 14, 2015.

The assault was however captured on CCTV. The court heard how the taxi driver had pulled over in Bunda Street after seeing what appeared to be a man hailing the taxi.

As the taxi stopped, Lees, then 19, hit the passenger door.

When the driver got out to inspect for damage, Lees punched him repeatedly in the head, breaking his nose.

"You bloody Indians, what are you doing here? Go back to your country," Lees said to the driver during the assault.

Magistrate Robert Cook sentenced the man on Friday to a 15-month good behaviour order, with 180 hours of community service. He also imposed a $1000 fine for the racial vilification offence.

Prosecutor Soraya Saikal said the offences happened in the context of a young man drinking to excess, but "these sorts of attitudes and views do not come out of nowhere".

She said the taxi driver had suffered a broken nose and still had difficulties eating and a loose tooth. He had since stopped driving taxis and now worked in retail.

Mr Cook said he came very close to imposing a prison sentence, going so far as to write down that no other sentence would be appropriate.

But after hearing from the man's lawyer Grant Brady, SC, and reading psychiatric reports, Mr Cook said as a result of the many "positive influences" on the young man's life, that he would avoid prison on this occasion.

It was the man's first offences, and Mr Cook noted the young man was confused by the crimes, because he said he had never felt hostile to another race.

Mr Cook cited the support from the young man's family, and that the man was seeking help from professionals as factors that would assist in his rehabilitation.