Kimi Antonelli has blacked out his Instagram page in response to a deluge of abuse including death threats sent his way after the conclusion of Sunday’s Qatar Grand Prix

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Kimi Antonelli was received a torrent of vile abuse(Image: Getty Images)

Why Kimi Antonelli has been receiving death threats following the Qatar Grand Prix and what his Mercedes team are doing about it

Kimi Antonelli was the target of disgusting trolls on social media after the Qatar Grand Prix. The abuse sent his way got so bad that the 19-year-old decided to change his profile photo to a block of black to take a stand against the vile trolling.
Why Antonelli received the abuse: It came after Antonelli made a mistake on the penultimate lap of the race which led to him being overtaken by Lando Norris. Antonelli finished fifth as a result, one place behind the McLaren driver.
The significance of that: It could play a part in the outcome of the title race. Norris scored 12 points instead of 10 by finishing fourth instead of fifth and that means Max Verstappen is 12 points behind heading into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season finale. It makes it harder for the Dutchman to win the championship.
Impact of comments from Red Bull figures: Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase said over the radio seconds after the incident: “I am not sure what happened to Antonelli there. It looked like he just pulled over and let Lando through.” After the race, team adviser Helmut Marko claimed it was “so obvious” that Antonelli had let Norris pass him without challenge.
Toto Wolff’s response: The Mercedes team principal spoke with Lambiase to clear the air but was furious with Marko’s comment in particular. “This is total, utter nonsense that blows my mind,” he raged, calling his fellow Austrian “brainless” for suggesting Antonelli had ceded the place on purpose.
The end result: It’s understood more than 1,100 hate-fuelled comments were sent to Antonelli’s personal social media accounts, with 330 more spotted on the Mercedes socials. Several of these offensive remarks are understood to include threats of death or harm towards the 19-year-old.
What Mercedes are doing: The team is preparing to submit all the offensive remarks it has gathered to F1 governing body the FIA, which runs its own United Against Online Abuse initiative.
Red Bull statement: They team did not directly apologise for the comments made by its staff members but said in a statement on Monday: “We sincerely regret that this has led to Kimi receiving online abuse.” Red Bull also admitted that it was “clearly incorrect” to suggest that Antonelli had allowed Norris to pass.