Following the Qatar Grand Prix, Red Bull has issued an apology to Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli after the young Italian was subjected to a torrent of online abuse, including death threats. The controversy stemmed from suggestions made by members of the Red Bull team that Antonelli deliberately allowed McLaren's Lando Norris to overtake him during the race.
The incident occurred in the final stages of the Qatar Grand Prix, where Norris was chasing Antonelli for fourth place. Antonelli made an error at turn nine, running wide through turn 10, which allowed Norris to pass him. This overtake was crucial for Norris, as it increased his advantage over Red Bull's Max Verstappen in the championship standings.
After the race, Max Verstappen's race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, commented over the radio that it appeared Antonelli had "just pulled over and let Norris through". These comments were amplified by Red Bull's motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, who stated that Antonelli had "waved" Norris past.
These remarks triggered a wave of online abuse directed at the 19-year-old Antonelli, who is known to be friendly with Verstappen. Mercedes reported that they identified over 1,100 "severe or suspect" comments on Antonelli's social media, including "several which were death threats". Antonelli responded by blacking out his profile picture on Instagram. Mercedes also identified another 330 "severe or suspect" comments on their own social media platforms and reported the incidents to the FIA's United Against Online Abuse campaign.
Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, condemned the comments as "brainless" and "total utter nonsense". He confronted Lambiase, who apologized for his remarks. Subsequently, Red Bull issued a statement apologizing for provoking the abuse.
Red Bull's statement clarified that "Comments made before the end of and immediately after the Qatar GP suggesting that Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli had deliberately allowed Lando Norris to overtake him are clearly incorrect". The team explained that replay footage showed Antonelli momentarily losing control of his car, which allowed Norris to pass. "We sincerely regret that this has led to Kimi receiving online abuse," the statement concluded.
Helmut Marko also backtracked on his comments, stating that after reviewing the footage, he realized Antonelli's error was not intentional. "I'm sorry that Antonelli got so much flak online," Marko said. "To clarify once again: he didn't let Norris pass on purpose".
Antonelli himself addressed the incident, explaining that he was simply pushing hard and lost the rear of the car. "I didn't do it on purpose, and there's not much I could do about it," he said.
The FIA has also responded to the incident, reiterating its commitment to ensuring a safe and respectful environment for everyone involved in the sport. "We stand in support of Kimi Antonelli and urge the wider community, online and offline, to treat drivers, teams, officials, and the whole sporting ecosystem with the respect and compassion that they deserve," the FIA stated.
