Red Bull Voices Remorse Over Remarks Linked to Death Threats Against Driver Kimi Antonelli

The Red Bull racing outfit has issued a statement stating its sincere regret for post-race remarks that were followed by widespread online abuse, including death threats, directed at Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli.

Antonelli was said to have switched his social media picture to a blank image on Monday, a reaction to the hurtful messages that flooded his accounts. Mercedes confirmed that several of these communications included direct threats against the driver's life.

The situation originated with team radio during the closing stages of the Qatar Grand Prix. Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase remarked over the air that it "appeared as if" Antonelli had "deliberately moved aside" to let rival driver Lando Norris through.

This incident proved crucial for the championship battle, as the overtake secured extra points. This extended the McLaren driver's points advantage over Verstappen to 12 points heading into the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

In its statement, Red Bull clarified: "Observations made suggesting that Kimi Antonelli had intentionally let Lando Norris past are factually wrong. Video evidence shows Antonelli momentarily losing control of his car, thereby allowing Norris to pass him. We deeply regret that this has led to Kimi receiving such abuse."

The team's announcement stopped short of a formal apology for the original claim. However, reports indicate that Lambiase later apologised to Toto Wolff after reviewing video evidence of the incident.

"This is complete and utter rubbish. That astounds me even to hear that," said Wolff. "We are battling for second place in the team standings... How brainless can you be to even say something like this?"

Wolff explained that he had cleared the air with Lambiase, who stated he did not witness the moment when he made the comment. The team reported a "massive surge" in negative traffic targeting Antonelli after the race.

For his part, Antonelli described the moment as a simple mistake. He said he was pushing hard to catch the Williams ahead and experienced a "big snap" that caused him to go off track and surrender fourth place.

"It was really hard with the turbulence and the tyres were overheating," Antonelli remarked. "A shame to lose the place because it would have been additional points."

Main Takeaways from the Situation

• Red Bull has voiced remorse for comments made by a team member.
• Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli was targeted by severe online abuse in the wake of those comments.
• The controversial remark involved an on-track pass that affected the title battle.
• Video replays show Antonelli made a mistake, contradicting the suggestion of team orders.
• The engineer involved has expressed regret to Mercedes team leadership.