Home / Sports / Red Bull Apologizes for F1 Driver Death Threats
Red Bull Apologizes for F1 Driver Death Threats
1 Dec, 2025
Summary
- Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli received death threats on social media.
- Red Bull apologized for comments suggesting Antonelli intentionally let Norris pass.
- An 18-year-old driver faced abuse after F1 race engineer's claims.
Following the Qatar Grand Prix, Red Bull has issued an apology after Mercedes' rookie driver, Kimi Antonelli, received death threats on social media. The controversy stemmed from claims by Red Bull's Helmut Marko and Max Verstappen's race engineer, suggesting Antonelli deliberately allowed Lando Norris to pass him on the final lap. These comments implied the rookie was aiding Norris in the championship battle against Verstappen.
However, replays clearly show Antonelli experiencing oversteer in a corner, which caused him to go wide and lose fourth place. Red Bull acknowledged in a statement that their earlier suggestions were incorrect and regretted the online abuse directed at the 18-year-old Italian driver. Antonelli subsequently obscured his social media profile picture.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff strongly refuted Marko's claims, calling them "utter nonsense" and highlighting Antonelli's own fight for position. Wolff also confirmed a conversation with Verstappen's race engineer, who apologized for any distress caused by his comments, clarifying he had not seen the incident clearly at the time.
