
Seven-times F1 world champion, Lewis Hamilton was victimised to racist abuse online after winning his home GP at Silverstone for British Grand Prix. Top social media company Facebook confirmed on Monday it had deleted several comments from their Instagram platform.
Home hero tremendously celebrated British GP victory at Silverstone in front of his 140,000 spectators, after recovering from a 10-second penalty for a first-lap collision. The crash was resulted Verstappen out of the race.
The Championship rivals Max and Lewis collided at the Copse turn as they battle for the first place. Title leader ended up in the wall and was taken to hospital as a cautionary measure, having recorded a 51G impact, which was resulted in a red flag and a provisional race stoppage.
Facebook told Sky Sports: “The racist abuse directed at Lewis Hamilton during and after the British Grand Prix is unacceptable and we’ve removed a number of comments from Instagram.
Racist comments with ‘monkey emojis’ and other racial insults were sent as replies to a post by the Mercedes team on Instagram celebrating Hamilton’s extra ordinary victory.
Max has labelled his F1 title rival Hamilton “disrespectful and unsportsmanlike behavior” for celebrating victory at the British GP, while he is in hospital following a life-threating crash on the first lap of the Silverstone race.
“In addition to our work to remove comments and accounts that repeatedly break our rules, there are safety features available, including Comment Filters and Message Controls, which can mean no one has to see this type of abuse.
“No single thing will fix this challenge over-night, but we’re committed to the work to keep our community safe from abuse.”
In a joint statement, Mercedes and F1 governing body the FIA condemned the abuse of Hamilton and sought punishment for those guilty.
“These people have no place in our sport, and we urge that those responsible should be held accountable for their actions,” the statement read.
“Formula One, the FIA, the drivers and teams are working to build a more diverse and inclusive sport and such unacceptable instances of online abuse must be highlighted and eliminated.”
Freshly Verstappen’s Red Bull team and the British F1 squad McLaren, also issued statements condemning the abuse.
“While we may be fierce rivals on track, we are all united against racism,” the Verstappen’s team said in an official statement. “We condemn racist abuse of any kind towards our team, our competitors and our fans.
“As a team we are disgusted and saddened to witness the racist abuse Lewis endured yesterday on social media after the collision with Max.
“There is never any excuse for it, there is certainly no place for it in our sport and those responsible should be held accountable.”
A McLaren statement read: “McLaren stands with Formula 1, the FIA, and our fellow teams and drivers in condemning the deplorable racist abuse towards Lewis Hamilton.
“Racism must be driven out of our sport, and it’s our shared responsibility to unite and eliminate it.”
Hamilton has been a vocal campaigner for social justice and among the supporters of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.