Mercedes, Formula One and its governing body the FIA issued a joint statement Monday condemning the online racist abuse aimed at Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton was targeted following the Mercedes driver’s crash with rival Max Verstappen on the opening lap of Sunday’s British Grand Prix that sent the championship leader hurtling out of the race.
“Formula One, the FIA and the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team condemn this behavior in the strongest possible terms,” the statement said. “These people have no place in our sport and we urge that those responsible should be held accountable for their actions.
Diverse and inclusive
“Formula One, the FIA, the drivers and the teams are working to build a more diverse and inclusive sport, and such unacceptable instances of online abuse must be highlighted and eliminated.”
Verstappen’s team Red Bull also issued a statement criticising the attacks on Hamilton.
“While we may be fierce rivals on-track, we are all united against racism,” the team said.
“We condemn racist abuse of any kind towards our teams, our competitors and our fans.
“As a team we are disgusted and saddened to witness the racist abuse Lewis endured yesterday on social media after the collision with Max. There is never any excuse for it. There is certainly no place for it in our sport and those responsible should be held accountable.”
Dossier compiled
It is understood that F1 is compiling a dossier of the offensive posts and will raise them directly with the platforms and call on them to take action.
Facebook, which owns Instagram, said it tried to remove harmful content as quickly as possible and encouraged people to use the tools it offers to block abuse.