Formula 1 News: The driver for Williams, Nicholas Latifi crashed into the wall at turn 14 in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Till that time, only six laps were remaining at the Yas Marina Circuit. The crash resulted in a safety car which would help in deciding the championship.

The Race Director, Michael Masi made some controversial decisions. He opted to resume the race with just one lap left. This led to Verstappen surpassing Hamilton and winning his first-ever Formula 1 title.

Formula 1 News: Latifi’s response to the social media hatred

Nicholas Latifi posted an open letter on Social Media calling out the disgraceful messages he received post his crash. Nicholas’ reply after his crash was “It is not really a surprise to me.”

Latifi deleted his Twitter and Instagram handle from his phone as he knew that he’ll be targeted and the hate would be inevitable. Nicholas Latifi wrote, “I’m purposely staying away from social media and waiting for things to settle down.’

After enduring atrocious online hate, he said that “Situation has gotten out of control after my retirement in Abu Dhabi. I have received countless messages, both publically and via DMs. Most of them have been supportive but that doesn’t outweigh the hate and abuse directed towards me. I have been looking for the right way to handle all of this. I’m at crossroads about whether I should ignore or talk publically about it. Moreover, it adds to the dilemma of whether I should address the social media hate.”

“Whilst speaking my mind I look forward if this arouses another conversation about online bullying and its consequences on people. It is shocking how people use social media as a channel to express anger, hate, and violence. Hence, this is something I’m calling out. He also admits that as a sportsperson competing on the world stage, he was expecting criticism. And was also shocked to see a hideous tone of the hate, abuse and death threats.”

People who are dear to him also received online abuse and according to Latifi, “they are not true fans of the sport.” Furthermore, he added, “People will have opinions and that is completely fine. When you are competing at a high level where you are vulnerable to being scrutinized, having a thick skin is a must.”

“It bothers me how somebody else would react to a similar level of abuse. Activities of the vocal minority shouldn’t dictate who we are.”

“Last week’s events have made me realize how necessary it is to express support to the victims of online hate.”

“I cannot convince everybody who acted in this way towards me. They might even use this message against me but it’s right to call out such horrendous behavior. Staying silent in these situations is not the right approach. I want to thank all the people who have shown support towards me. I have seen and read your messages and I appreciate every single one of them.”

Nicholas Latifi concluded by saying I hope sharing my thoughts highlight the need for immediate action before adding, “Just be kind everyone!”

Williams Racing added, “We as a team wholeheartedly agree with our driver.”

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