F1 Urges Social Media to Intensify Fight Against Online Abuse

F1 is urging major social media companies to increase their efforts to tackle online abuse after a series of troubling incidents affected top drivers. The issue gained attention when both Yuki Tsunoda and Jack Doohan became targets of heated and harmful messages.

This situation escalated after the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, where a fake story posted by a parody account was widely believed to be true, causing a wave of negativity against Doohan. The conflict partly stems from Franco Colapinto’s return to Alpine, which fueled national pride among Argentinian fans.

However, a vocal minority overstepped the line with persistent online harassment, particularly directed at Doohan, who lost his seat to Colapinto.

The situation grew more intense following an incident in Friday practice at Imola, where Tsunoda and Colapinto were involved in a routine impeding moment on track. The spike in online attacks against Tsunoda after Imola has been heavily documented and discussed in recent reports.https://fervogear.com/2025/05/20/news/f1/tsunoda-abuse-imola/

What could have been dismissed as a minor misunderstanding instead led to a spike in online attacks against Tsunoda. Reacting to these incidents, both Alpine and the FIA released statements reminding fans to support all competitors and behave respectfully.

Colapinto himself spoke out, calling on his supporters to remain respectful. A significant number of Argentinian fans left positive comments on Tsunoda’s posts, apologizing for the actions of others.

To address the rising problem, Formula 1 and its teams have stepped up measures to moderate comments on their profiles and have joined the FIA in running campaigns against online abuse. In the past year, F1 has consistently called for platforms—such as X and Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook—to strengthen protections for users.

Both companies have scaled back global content moderation recently, which F1 says contributes to the problem. F1’s recent statement said: “No one should be subject to abuse online or in any other form. Jack Doohan and Yuki Tsunoda are great people, very talented drivers, and ambassadors for our sport who, along with their families, should be treated with respect rather than receive abuse by people who hide behind social media.”

Drivers are adapting to this reality in different ways. McLaren’s Lando Norris mentioned after the Imola event that he uses social media less than he used to, calling it a drain on his time and energy.

Norris encouraged others to consider the personal impact of reading harmful comments and the benefits of spending less time online. Recent months have seen a broader effort across racing to create safer digital spaces.https://fervogear.com/2025/05/19/news/f1/villeneuve-blasts-mclaren/

The FIA introduced a new campaign to fight online hate and continues to work with teams to report and block abusive users across platforms. For more on digital safety initiatives, see the United Nations’ guide on combating online hate speech. As of May 2025, Formula 1 leaders remain clear that while communities within the sport can support moderation and reporting, they need action from the platforms to truly stop the cycle of abuse.

Teams, drivers, and fans alike continue to advocate for mutual respect and fair support, reinforcing that everyone involved in Formula 1 deserves to participate free from harassment and vilification. The sport’s officials are watching closely to see if social media companies will respond with new tools or stronger policies, as outlined in Meta’s transparency reports.

In the meantime, Formula 1 plans to keep promoting its anti-abuse campaigns and working to protect its community. The hope is that these coordinated efforts will help make online platforms safer for drivers, teams, and fans, safeguarding the excitement and passion that makes Formula 1 unique. For further reading on online harassment prevention, visit StopBullying.gov.

Daniel Miller

Daniel Miller reports on Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends with race-day analysis, team-radio highlights, and point-standings updates. He explains power-unit upgrades, aerodynamic developments, and driver rivalries in straightforward, SEO-friendly language for a global F1 audience.