FIA call for 'compassion' after extreme Kimi Antonelli abuse

The FIA has issued a statement condemning the online abuse Kimi Antonelli has received in the wake of his mistake at the Qatar Grand Prix.

The Mercedes driver went off on the penultimate lap at the Lusail International Circuit, which handed fourth position to Lando Norris and two extra points in the F1 drivers' championship fight.

As a result, the Briton now has a 12-point buffer over Max Verstappen — and 16 points on Oscar Piastri — at this weekend's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

It is believed the 19-year-old, who has since blacked out his social media channels, was subjected to over 1,100 messages of abuse in the aftermath.

The motorsport governing body follows Red Bull in releasing a statement, with the Milton Keynes-based team's adviser Helmut Marko partially backtracking on accusations he made in the paddock after the 57-lap race.

Those words, coupled with a remark Verstappen's engineer Gianpiero Lambiase made over team radio, helped foster the narrative that it was intentional on Antonelli's part.

Toto Wolff called Marko "brainless" for suggesting it was not merely an error, Mercedes was set to present the extent of the abuse to the FIA, which has now called for "compassion" in its statement.

"The FIA, and its United Against Online Abuse campaign, condemns abuse and harassment in any form," the governing body said.

"It remains absolutely critical that everyone operating within our sport can do so in a safe and respectful environment.

"We stand in support of Kimi Antonelli and urge the wider community, online and offline, to treat drivers, teams, officials and the whole sporting ecosystem with the respect and compassion that they deserve."