Franco Colapinto fans weren’t happy after his Dutch Grand Prix penalties. Image: Kym Illman/Pro Star Pics
Colapinto was given a drive-through penalty after passing Yuki Tsunoda under double-waved yellow flags on the opening lap at Zandvoort, with Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad receiving the same punishment for a separate infringement.
The yellow flags had been triggered following Max Verstappen’s crash at the final corner, with debris forcing drivers to take evasive action as the field completed the lap.
Colapinto described his punishment as “extremely harsh”, while Lindblad also questioned the severity of the sanction, although both penalties were applied under regulations governing overtaking under double yellows.
The fallout intensified after Sean Summers, chief marketing officer of Colapinto sponsor Mercado Libre, publicly attacked the stewards and questioned the integrity of their decision-making.
“The Stewards are killing the integrity of F1. This season they are proving to be horrible and impacting race results,” Summers wrote.
“Incompetence? Dishonesty? Both? Something is seriously broken in that organisation’s culture.”
The criticism was followed by abusive messages and threats being directed towards the stewards online, prompting the FIA to respond through its United Against Online Abuse initiative.
“Following the Dutch Grand Prix, FIA stewards were targeted with online abuse after applying sporting penalties in line with FIA regulations,” the governing body said.
“The United Against Online Abuse Coalition condemns all forms of abuse and harassment. Disagreement with decisions is part of sport, but it must never justify threats or personal attacks.
“In 2023, the FIA launched the United Against Online Abuse Coalition after a steward faced targeted abuse following the United States Grand Prix.
“We urge everyone engaging with our sport to do so with respect and responsibility, online and offline.”
The FIA’s United Against Online Abuse program was established to combat harassment across motorsport and wider sport, bringing governing bodies and other organisations together in an attempt to tackle increasingly hostile behaviour on social media.
The latest intervention comes amid a series of incidents involving drivers, teams and officials over the past year, with the consequences in some cases extending beyond social media.
Australian Jack Doohan revealed earlier this year that he received death threats during his time racing for Alpine in 2025, including ahead of what became his final F1 appearance at the Miami Grand Prix.
Doohan said threats had been sent directly to him before the event and security around him was increased as a result.
“I got serious death threats for this [Miami] Grand Prix, saying they’re going to kill me here, if I’m not out of the car,” Doohan revealed in an episode of Formula 1: Drive to Survive.
“I had six or seven emails saying if I am still in the car by Miami, all my limbs will be cut off.”
Doohan and members of his family were also subjected to online harassment surrounding Alpine’s decision to replace him with Colapinto during the 2025 season.
Formula 2 driver Alex Dunne was another target last year after his involvement in the opening-lap accident during the Monaco feature race resulted in a wave of abuse.
Dunne subsequently removed his social media accounts, revealing he had “never received such bad messages in my life.”
That episode prompted a joint response from the FIA, Formula 1, Formula 2 and Formula 3 under the United Against Online Abuse banner.
Alpine has meanwhile backed the application of the regulations at Zandvoort despite acknowledging the penalties given to Colapinto and Lindblad were severe.
“We fully trust the FIA and the stewards when it comes to the policing of these rules and the application of sporting penalties during a live race scenario,” Alpine said.
“We believe the penalties applied for yellow flag Infringements during the opening laps of the Dutch Grand Prix were indeed harsh, but acknowledge they fit the punishment based on the letter of the law and were consistently applied across all competitors and is something we can review and learn from as a team.”