Mercedes Formula 1 driver Kimi Antonelli has decided to deactivate his social media accounts after receiving a barrage of death threats and more than 1,100 hateful messages following the Qatar Grand Prix. The 19-year-old faced severe online abuse from trolls following a late-race incident that allowed Lando Norris to overtake him.
This turn of events benefited Norris, who secured two additional points that could be crucial in the championship battle. With a 12-point lead over Max Verstappen, the current championship leader, Norris only needs to finish third in the upcoming Abu Dhabi finale to clinch the world 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 have faced. Reports confirm that over 1,100 offensive comments were directed at Antonelli on his personal accounts, with an additional 330 comments on the official Mercedes team pages, some including threatening language towards the young driver.
The Mercedes team is gathering all the offensive comments to report them to the FIA under their United Against Online Abuse initiative. This action comes following remarks from Red Bull officials suggesting Antonelli’s actions may have favored Norris, who races for McLaren, a team powered by Mercedes engines.
During the race, Verstappen’s race engineer expressed confusion over Antonelli’s actions, leading to speculation that he intentionally allowed Norris to overtake. However, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff dismissed these claims, calling them baseless and emphasizing that the team’s focus is on securing a strong finish in the championship.
Red Bull later issued a statement expressing regret over the comments that triggered the online abuse towards Antonelli, clarifying that the incident was a result of a racing mistake and not deliberate action.
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