Formula 1 team Red Bull expresses disgust at insults that Max Verstappen, Sergio Pérez and their families received on social media after the race in São Paulo. That was in response to ignoring a team order from Verstappen in the last round of the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The world champion then refused to comply with the request to give up sixth place in favour of his teammate Sergio Pérez.
Red Bull speaks of “unacceptable” reactions on the internet. “Death threats, hate mail and insults that affect even their families are deplorable. The abuse on social media is shocking and saddening and must stop,” the team said.
“Unfortunately, it is something that we as a sport have to condemn with some regularity. There is no place in motor racing for this muck shop. We care about inclusion and want a safe place for everyone to work and enjoy our sport.”
Verstappen did not want to give a valid reason for his refusal to help Pérez after the race in Brazil. It earned the world champion a lot of comments. Although Verstappen is already confident of the world title, he could no longer win the race in São Paulo, while Pérez is still fighting for second place in the championship.
Red Bull admits it made mistakes when giving the team order. “We had not anticipated the situation that unfolded in the last lap; we had not discussed a strategy for such a scenario in advance,” the racing team reports. “Unfortunately, Max was not informed about the request to give up his position until the last corner, without having all the necessary information.
This put Max, who has always been an open and honest team player, in an awkward situation with little time to react, and that was not our intention. However, afterwards, the team accepted Max’s statement.”
