Kimi Antonelli harassed on social media after the Qatar Grand Prix, Red Bull apologizes

The Qatar Grand Prix potentially proved to be a turning point in the fight for the 2025 world championship, and Kimi Antonelli played a key role. On lap 30 of the race, the rookie Mercedes was in third position, ahead Oscar piastriVery sharp, the Australian braked late in the first corner to brilliantly overtake the Italian. Antonelli then found himself under pressure from Lando Norris, then fifth. Holding onto his position for 17 laps, the protégé of Toto wolff He finally succumbed to the Briton's attacks on the final lap, briefly losing control of his Mercedes at turn ten of the penultimate lap. This overtake gave Lando Norris two crucial points in his quest for a first world title.

Before reviewing the onboard camera footage from both pilots, Gianpiero Lambiase had alerted Max Verstappen. " It looks like Antonelli just moved over and let Norris through. " he accused on the radio. Adding fuel to the fire, Helmut Marko, the advisor to Red BullKimi Antonelli also criticized him. Antonelli clearly let it go. he lashed out at the Austrian. He left McLaren He passed him twice, more or less. It was obvious. The first time (when Piastri overtook him earlier in the race) was the same. »

A theory quickly denied by the person in question. With two laps remaining, I arrived too fast at turn 9, lost the rear and went off the track. he lamented. It was a mistake. "Toto Wolff also flew to the rescue of his pilot." That's totally absurd, completely insane, it's beyond me. We're fighting for second place in the constructors' championship, which is important for us. Kimi is fighting for a possible third place in the race. I mean, how much lack of common sense do you have to be to say something like that? the Mercedes executive was furious"It annoys me. Because I'm already annoyed by the race itself, by the way it unfolded. I'm annoyed by the mistake at the end. I'm annoyed by other mistakes. And then, to hear such nonsense astounds me."

The Austrian nevertheless clarified the situation with Max Verstappen's race engineer. “I spoke to [Gianpiero Lambiase]. Obviously, they were emotional at that moment. I told him: '[Antonelli] just lost control. He had a brief moment in the previous corner, then less speed entering the left. It can happen.' With Gianpiero, everything is clear. We've clarified things. he explained. He said he hadn't seen the situation. Why would we do that? Why would we even think about interfering in the drivers' championship? We really need to question ourselves and ask if we're seeing things. »

Red Bull apologizes… too late

Although Wolff and Lambiase eventually reached an agreement, the comments made by Gianpiero Lambiase and Helmut Marko had deplorable consequences, with Kimi Antonelli receiving thousands of threats on social media. In an attempt to defuse the situation, Red Bull issued a statement clarifying its remarks. The comments made before the end and immediately after the Qatar Grand Prix, suggesting that Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli deliberately let Lando Norris overtake him, are patently incorrect. Footage from the replays shows that Antonelli momentarily lost control of his car, allowing Norris to overtake him.
We sincerely regret that this has led to online abuse against Kimi. »

Helmut Marko also apologized for the wave of harassment suffered by Kimi Antonelli.I watched the footage again, very carefully. The first time (against Piastri), Antonelli could have fought a bit harder. The second time, it was a piloting error and unintentional. acknowledges the Red Bull advisor to F1-Insider. I'm sorry Antonelli has received so much criticism online. To be perfectly clear: he didn't intentionally let Norris through. »

Mercedes, however, has taken up the FIA's United Against Online Harassment campaign, cataloging more than 1,100 messages received by the young driver since the incident.

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