Williams driver Nicholas Latifi on Tuesday revealed that he has received death threats after the controversial season finale of Formula One in Abu Dhabi.
The 26-year-old has been subjected to hate, abuse, and threats on social media after his crash at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix which sparked a dramatic end to the title race.
Max Verstappen won out a title decider over rival Lewis Hamilton under the lights at Yas Marina. The Dutchman lost the lead at the start but he passed seven-times champion on the very last lap of the race after a safety car emerged for Nicholas Latifi's crash five laps from the end of the race.
Latifi wrote on his website: "Going back to the race weekend, as soon as the checkered flag dropped, I knew how things were likely to play out on social media. The fact that I felt it would be best if I deleted Instagram and Twitter on my phone for a few days says all we need to know about how cruel the online world can be."
"The ensuing hate, abuse, and threats on social media were not really a surprise to me as it's just the stark reality of the world we live in right now. I'm no stranger to being talked about negatively online, I think every sports person who competes on the world stage knows they're under extreme scrutiny and this comes with the territory sometimes."
"But as we've seen time and time again, across all different sports, it only takes one incident at the wrong time to have things completely blown out of proportion and bring out the worst in people who are so-called 'fans' of the sport."
"What shocked me was the extreme tone of the hate, abuse, and even the death threats I received. To the people who don't understand or don't agree with that, that's fine with me. You can have your opinion. But to use those opinions to fuel hatred, abuse and threats of violence, not only to me, but to those closest to me as well, tells me these people are not true fans of the sport."
"Thankfully, I'm comfortable enough in my own skin, and I've been in this world long enough that I can do a pretty good job of just letting any negativity wash over me. But I know I'm not alone in thinking that a negative comment always seems to stick out more - and can sometimes be enough to drown out 100 positive ones," he added.
( With inputs from ANI )
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