Mercedes Formula 1 driver, Kimi Antonelli, has taken down his social media accounts following a deluge of death threats and more than 1,100 abusive messages after the Qatar Grand Prix. The 19-year-old faced severe online harassment from trolls due to an error in the race that allowed Lando Norris to overtake him.
As a consequence, Norris gained two crucial points that could impact the championship battle. With a 12-point lead over Max Verstappen, who won the Qatar race, Norris only needs a third-place finish 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 all black, hinting at the possibility of online abuse, a concern confirmed by Mirror Sport. Reports indicate that over 1,100 negative comments targeted Antonelli’s personal accounts, with around 330 more directed at the Mercedes team’s social media pages, some containing threats towards the young driver.
The Mercedes team plans to report the offensive comments to the FIA as part of the United Against Online Abuse initiative. This move follows remarks from Red Bull executives implying that Antonelli may have assisted Norris, who races for McLaren, a team using Mercedes engines.
During the race, Verstappen’s engineer expressed confusion over Antonelli’s actions, suggesting he intentionally allowed Norris to pass. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff swiftly dismissed these claims, labeling them as baseless and expressing frustration over the accusations.
Red Bull later issued a statement regretting the comments that led to online abuse towards Antonelli, acknowledging that replay footage showed Antonelli’s loss of control, enabling Norris to overtake.
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