FIA issue plea after Red Bull conspiracy leads to Antonelli abuse

The FIA have issued an official statement, following online abuse aimed in the direction of Mercedes F1 youngster Kimi Antonelli after the Qatar Grand Prix.

In the closing stages of the race, Antonelli was attempting to hold off championship leader Lando Norris for fourth position, but made a mistake on the final lap which allowed Norris to claim fourth and boost his position in the standings.

With Max Verstappen winning the race, it was absolutely crucial for Norris to get that fourth place, with the Brit now only needing to get on the podium at the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi to make absolutely sure that he is the 2025 world champion.

However, both Verstappen's race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase and team advisor Helmut Marko suggested that the young Mercedes driver had moved aside to allow Norris past him in the closing stages of the race, ultimately damaging Verstappen's championship hopes.

That was clearly not true, with the onboard video from Antonelli's Mercedes showing that he suffered a huge amount of oversteer and almost completely lost control of his Mercedes.

Red Bull and Marko have since apologised for their comments, but it has led to a heap of abuse heading the way of Antonelli, who is just 19 years old.

Now, the FIA have issued their response to the abuse received by Antonelli, taking to social media to release a statement.

"The FIA and its United Against Online Abuse campaign condemns abuse and harassment in any form," the statement read.

"It remains absolutely critical that everyone operating within our sport can do so in a safe and respectful environment.

"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."

Antonelli's social media abuse

Since the online abuse started, Antonelli has blacked out his profile picture on Instagram, likely a response to trolls.

The Italian youngster has driven brilliantly well at Mercedes in his rookie year, and has the chance to finish above seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in the world championship, currently two points behind the Brit heading into the final race.

After a dramatic last few weeks, the Italian will no doubt be looking forward to some time off in the winter to recharge his batteries before a mammoth 2026 campaign begins.

A Red Bull statement released on Monday morning read: "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.

"Replay footage shows Antonelli momentarily losing control of his car, thus allowing Norris to pass him.

"We sincerely regret that this has led to Kimi receiving online abuse."

READ MORE: Red Bull issue official apology after Kimi Antonelli abused online

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