13,000 death threats against Formula 1 star: FIA President vows to crack down

After Pierre Gasly got in the way of his team-mate Franco Colapinto during the Madrid race in September, the Frenchman was bombarded with hate messages online. His family and girlfriend also bore the brunt of the Argentine fans’ anger, as the 30-year-old revealed shortly afterwards.

The whole affair had repercussions for Colapinto, as Alpine boss Flavio Briatore threatened to stop the Argentine from speaking to domestic TV journalists if things continued in that vein. Colapinto then took to social media himself with a video appeal to his fans in an attempt to calm the situation.

This is very much in line with the views of FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who, in an interview with ‘thedrive.com’, also called on the drivers to take action: ‘It’s not just about the team principals. The drivers have fans, and they can tell them: ‘Stop it, I don’t want you to be my fans if you won’t behave yourselves and make death threats.’ The drivers also have a responsibility, because they are ambassadors and role models. If they protect another driver, they are also protecting themselves. The FIA also bears a responsibility, as do the teams and you, the media.”

“We are in danger of losing the sport to online hate, and this is exactly where we need you,” said Ben Sulayem, addressing the media and fans. “We have launched the ‘United Against Online Abuse’ initiative and must deploy extensive AI technology to expose these online trolls. There is no place for them, because if we do nothing, our sport will suffer irreparable damage,” he continued, emphasising: “Pierre Gasly was bombarded with death threats 13,000 times! We must tackle this together; otherwise, we will not get this problem under control.”

‘The mission is to educate and raise awareness. We must also use our power. If the hate comes from a spectator, they will be banned. If they are part of the media, we have the power to impose bans there too. And if they hide online, AI will expose them. Once one is exposed, I can guarantee that they will all be scared,” the FIA President makes absolutely clear.

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