Alpine condemns social media abuse after Colapinto's Baku crash triggers fresh wave of hatred

Alpine has condemned social media abuse for the second time in weeks after Franco Colapinto’s crash at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix restart in Baku triggered a fresh wave of online hatred aimed at Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, and others connected to the sport.

Colapinto lost control at a safety-car restart and caused a multi-car pile-up that eliminated both his Alpine team-mate Gasly and reigning champion Norris. Before he had seen the footage, Norris suggested the driver responsible deserved “at least a one-race ban” — a comment that, without Norris naming Colapinto directly, still appeared to ignite a torrent of abuse directed primarily at the Briton.

“As a team, we feel it’s necessary to speak out once more about the hate and abuse online following the Azerbaijan Grand Prix,” Alpine said in a statement on Sunday. “Mistakes happen when racing at the limit and no matter the result or outcome, nobody should be subject to hateful or abusive comments.”

The team was careful not to single out any particular fanbase. “Condemning abuse on social media is not aimed at any one fan base or the supporters of one team or driver — this is universal and should be called out and recognised by all fans of the sport.”

The statement added: “We strongly condemn the reaction of some fans online and stand in solidarity with Formula One, the FIA, and other teams in wanting to stamp it out. It has become a regular occurrence in recent races and cannot be condoned.”

This is not the first time Alpine has been forced to address the issue. Argentinian fans faced scrutiny after directing hateful comments at FIA stewards and Alpine staff when Colapinto received a drive-through penalty for overtaking under a double yellow flag at Zandvoort. A further wave followed after Gasly briefly refused to yield to his team-mate during the Madrid race weekend; Gasly revealed that threats had extended to his family, while Colapinto described the behaviour as “not nice to see” but maintained it was “not just his fans”.

The latest incidents reportedly prompted Alpine F1 boss Flavio Briatore to warn Argentinian media that access to Colapinto could be withdrawn if the abuse continued to damage the team’s reputation.