Mercedes responds to Red Bull statement on Kimi Antonelli death threats

Mercedes confirmed that it “really appreciated” the statement which Red Bull issued over Qatar GP comments from its camp, ones which contributed to vile abuse directed at Kimi Antonelli.

An error late in the race from Antonelli, which allowed Lando Norris through, was initially eluded to as an intentional act by Gianpiero Lambiase and Helmut Marko. The latter went on to retract that claim, and Red Bull issued a statement regretting the online abuse which Antonelli had been subjected to, abuse which included death threats.

Mercedes ‘really appreciated’ Red Bull Kimi Antonelli statement

Red Bull outfoxed McLaren on strategy in Qatar. The end result was Max Verstappen winning the Grand Prix ahead of Oscar Piastri.

Lando Norris, meanwhile, appeared consigned to fifth as he struggled to find a way beyond Antonelli’s Mercedes. That would have seen Verstappen head for the Abu Dhabi title decider only 10 points behind Norris.

Instead, Verstappen has a gap to 12 points to address, as an Antonelli wide moment on the penultimate lap allowed Norris to swoop through into fourth.

Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase had immediately suggested over team radio that Antonelli “moved aside” for Norris, while Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko had claimed post-race that Antonelli’s act was deliberate.

McLaren are powered by Mercedes engines.

Red Bull later released a statement, confirming that this suggestion was wrong, and showing support for Antonelli. The teenager blacked out his social media profile pictures following the race weekend, understood to be in direct response to the abuse which he received.

Red Bull’s statement read: “Comments made before the end of and immediately after the Qatar GP suggesting that Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli had deliberately allowed Lando Norris to overtake him are clearly incorrect.

“Replay footage shows Antonelli momentarily losing control of his car, thus allowing Norris to pass him. We sincerely regret that this has led to Kimi receiving online abuse.”

Mercedes’ strategic development director Simone Resta responded to that Red Bull statement positively, while speaking in Mercedes’ Qatar GP debrief video.

He said of the Antonelli abuse: “For us, for all the team, it’s quite disappointing.

“And we take online abuse very seriously.

“With the communication team, there’s a lot of work on tools and platforms to create a safe area for the fans to interact with the team.

“On top of it, it was great to see on Monday, a statement from Red Bull, stating their position. We really appreciated this one.”

More on the Kimi Antonelli online abuse

👉 Kimi Antonelli subjected to death threats in vile social media attacks

👉 FIA issues statement following Kimi Antonelli death threats

Mercedes will resume friendly competition with Red Bull one last time in F1 2025 this weekend.

Both teams arrive at Yas Marina Circuit with a shot at finishing runner-up to McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship. Mercedes takes an advantage of 33 points over Red Bull into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“Overall, Kimi, the engineers, the team, we are all working very united to maximise our potential in Abu Dhabi,” Resta continued, “and get the best possible result out there, aiming to achieve our objective, which is to finish P2 in the Constructors’ classification.”

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