Mercedes Formula 1 driver Kimi Antonelli has decided to deactivate his social media accounts after receiving numerous death threats and more than 1,100 abusive messages following the Qatar Grand Prix. The 19-year-old faced severe backlash from online trolls due to an incident during the race that allowed Lando Norris to overtake him.
This turn of events resulted in Norris gaining two additional points, potentially impacting the championship race. With a 12-point lead over Max Verstappen, the current race winner in Qatar, Norris only needs to secure third place in the upcoming Abu Dhabi finale to secure the world championship title, regardless of Verstappen’s performance.
After the race, Antonelli changed his Instagram profile picture to an all-black image, sparking speculation about the online abuse he might be facing. Reports indicate that over 1,100 negative comments were directed at Antonelli on his personal social media accounts, with an additional 330 comments found on the Mercedes team’s pages, some containing threats towards the young driver.
In response to the situation, the team plans to report all offensive remarks to the FIA as part of its United Against Online Abuse initiative. This action follows remarks from Red Bull executives implying that Antonelli may have intentionally allowed Norris to pass him, given that Norris races for McLaren, a team powered by Mercedes engines.
Verstappen’s race engineer expressed confusion over Antonelli’s actions, suggesting that the young driver had made it easy for Norris to overtake him. However, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff dismissed these claims, criticizing the insinuations and reaffirming that there was no intentional interference in the championship race.
Red Bull later issued a statement expressing regret over the remarks that triggered the online abuse towards Antonelli, clarifying that the incident was a result of Antonelli momentarily losing control of his car. The team regretted the online abuse received by Antonelli as a consequence of the misunderstanding.
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