Mercedes’ Formula 1 racer Kimi Antonelli has decided to deactivate his social media accounts following a barrage of death threats and more than 1,100 offensive messages after the Qatar Grand Prix. The 19-year-old faced intense online abuse from trolls due to a late-race error that allowed Lando Norris to overtake him.
As a consequence, Norris gained two crucial points that could impact the championship standings. He currently holds a 12-point lead over Max Verstappen, the winner of the Qatar race. This means that Norris only needs to secure third place in the upcoming Abu Dhabi finale to clinch the world championship title, regardless of Verstappen’s performance.
After the race, observers noted that Antonelli had changed his Instagram profile picture to an all-black image, sparking speculations about the online abuse he might be facing, a fact confirmed by Mirror Sport.
Reports indicate that over 1,100 derogatory comments were flagged on Antonelli’s personal social media profiles, with around 330 additional instances discovered on Mercedes’ team pages. Some of these comments included threats of violence or harm directed at the young driver.
The team is set to report all the offensive remarks to the FIA, which oversees the United Against Online Abuse initiative. This move comes in response to comments from senior Red Bull figures suggesting that Antonelli may have deliberately assisted Norris, who races for McLaren, a team powered by Mercedes engines.
During the incident, Verstappen’s race engineer expressed confusion over Antonelli’s actions, implying that he may have intentionally allowed Norris to pass without resistance. In response, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff swiftly dismissed these claims, calling them baseless and criticizing the accusers for their lack of understanding of the situation.
Red Bull issued a statement regretting the remarks that triggered the online abuse towards Antonelli, clarifying that the driver’s loss of control led to Norris overtaking him. The team expressed remorse for the resulting abuse faced by Kimi.
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