Mika Salo threatened after Verstappen penalty

Mika Salo received death threats from fans who did not appreciate the five-second penalty imposed on Max Verstappen at the US GP played last Sunday.

The pilot Red Bull took third place against Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari) in the final laps, but the Dutchman was not invited to the podium after being penalized for exceeding track limits.

The commissioners' decision was heavily criticized. Mika Salo, present within the college of commissioners, was under fire from comments from Internet users. After seeing his Wikipedia page modified, the 50-year-old Finn actually received much more worrying threats.

“I have received death threats, mainly from the Netherlands, confirmed Mika Salo to the Suomi newspaper. The Wikipedia page story was amusing, but threats against me and other members of the College of Commissioners should not be tolerated. »

Mika Salo has maintained that Max Verstappen's penalty was justified, with the Dutchman having been demoted to fourth following the sanction.

“It was a punishment, but rules are rules. They claim that a driver must be penalized if he takes advantage of exceeding track limits. The situation is clear”, insisted Mika Salo.

Discover the analysis of the US GP carried out by our special correspondent in AUTO issue 2137hebdo, available now in digital version on all platforms and on newsstands.