What Franco Colapinto said about the threats to Pierre Gasly | OneFootball

Ahead of the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which will take place this Saturday, Franco Colapinto addressed the threats suffered by his Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly over what happened between them on track in the last race in Spain.

Gasly did not let Colapinto through while the French driver still had to pit, and because of that situation, he and his family received threats on social media. The incident also sparked strong condemnation from Flavio Briatore, who warned that if it continued, interviews with Argentine media would come to an end.

Speaking with ESPN, Colapinto addressed the issue and said: “I saw that a lot of people sent hateful messages to Pierre, and of course, that’s not okay. I don’t spend much time on social media, but it’s never pleasant to receive those kinds of comments, especially when it happens to someone on the team I race for.”

“We are teammates and we get along very well. We fight and focus on the same result, the same objective and the same goal: to make Alpine better,” added the Argentine driver, who finished eleventh in the second free practice session.

“We always work as a team, and it’s not nice to see this, so I hope they can put an end to it,” Colapinto said, pointing out that this is something that unfortunately also happens to other Formula 1 drivers: “Yuki Tsunoda had a pretty bad time at one point last year as well and spoke about it; and the stewards, I think after Zandvoort, also received some insults after the penalty they gave me.”

“That happens a lot with fans in Formula 1, in any sport… These days it’s something very common, although unfortunately it shouldn’t be, and without a doubt more attention should be paid to things, to the words that come from everyone’s keyboards,” Franco added.

“The way to support us as a team is to push the team forward and stay strong together. Hopefully this won’t keep happening, but it’s complicated with fans in this sport; it’s not just about my supporters. I have some very passionate ones who want me to do well, and I hope they can enjoy the good results I’m achieving,” Colapinto concluded on the subject.

After the threats that Gasly made public, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the International Automobile Federation (FIA), also commented on the situation, calling the attacks “completely unacceptable” and stating that they cannot tolerate “online hate within our sport.”

In a statement on social media, the Emirati spoke about the incident and said: “The online abuse directed at Pierre Gasly and his family is completely unacceptable. Pierre has my full support and I strongly condemn this kind of behavior. No driver, official, volunteer or fan should have to face something like this.”

“We cannot accept online hate within our sport, and we all have a responsibility — governing bodies, teams, drivers, fans and social media platforms — to confront this behavior and create an environment based on respect,” he added.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.