Jack Doohan revealed he had to enter the Miami paddock under armed protection after receiving vile threats, simply for racing in the Alpine F1 car instead of Franco Colapinto.<\/p>\n
Social media trolls have become a blight on Formula 1, and it is getting worse with every passing year.<\/p>\n
Jack Doohan reveals online abuse forced extra security at Miami GP<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n Keyboard warriors hiding behind screens and aliases \u2013 and often several of them \u2013 spew their hate at the world. From politicians, to celebrities, to sportspeople, to the neighbour two doors down.<\/p>\n It is a stain on society.<\/p>\n And it is forcing more and more drivers to turn away from social media to protect their mental health and their families.<\/p>\n Lando Norris, who hasn\u2019t posted on X since 2024, also ignored his other social media accounts last season as he battled Oscar Piastri for the title.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve not been on social media for a few weeks now,\u201d Norris told PlanetF1.com and other media at Imola. \u201cIt\u2019s just not something I enjoy. I don\u2019t need to. It\u2019s my life. I can do what I like.\u201d<\/p>\n Liam Lawson followed suit, revealing to the Gypsy Tales podcast that he has gone as far as to delete his accounts.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so much better. So, so much better,\u201d the Racing Bulls driver explained. \u201cIt can be such a toxic place. I feel for people.\u201d<\/p>\n Addressing hateful online messages specifically, he continued: \u201c99 percent of the time, what people would say online, [they] would never have the balls to say to somebody\u2019s face. And it\u2019s the same in our sport when we\u2019re dealing with it.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, I don\u2019t read it now, but it\u2019s that kind of thing. The amount of negativity around drivers or teams that fans don\u2019t like and just the amount of negative comments that get put out there and crazy things that are being said.\u201d<\/p>\n Hateful, crazy, and threatening.<\/p>\n As Netflix prepares to release its upcoming season eight of Drive to Survive, one of the season\u2019s early stars, Jack Doohan<\/a>, has spoken of the threats he received.<\/p>\n More from Drive to Survive on PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n Why Netflix\u2019s Drive to Survive still grips Formula 1 audiences worldwide<\/a><\/p>\n Christian Horner reveals \u2018loss and hurt\u2019 after Red Bull axing<\/a><\/p>\n Racing for Alpine, with a Colapinto-shaped sword hanging over his head after Colapinto joined the Alpine programme with Flavio Briatore\u2019s support, the Australian driver was threatened by users on X in the days before the Miami Grand Prix.<\/p>\n \u201cI got serious death threats for this grand prix, saying they\u2019re going to kill me here, if I\u2019m not out of the car,\u201d he told the docuseries.<\/p>\n \u201cI had six or seven emails saying if I am still in the car by Miami, all my limbs will be cut off.<\/p>\n \u201cWednesday, I was there with my f***ing girlfriend and my trainer, and I\u2019ve got three armed men around me \u2013 I had to call my police escort to come and get it under control.\u201d<\/p>\n Formula 1 confirmed it was aware of the threats and increased Doohan\u2019s security in response.<\/p>\n \u201cFormula 1 is a family and a community that is based on respect and support for each other,\u201d F1 said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no place for abusive behaviour either online or in person and the whole sport stands united against anyone that attempts to undermine our values.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a community and will report anyone found to be acting in this way to the appropriate authorities and platforms.\u201d<\/p>\n Miami turned out to be Doohan\u2019s final race in the car as he was dropped in favour of Colapinto. But with the Argentine driver crashing in qualifying, a fake F1 parody account created a post linked to Doohan\u2019s father mocking Colapinto.<\/p>\n At the time Doohan took to social media to plead with fans to stop harassing his family.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you can clearly see, the story circulating above is completely false. It was fabricated by Argentine fans attempting to portray me and my family in a negative light,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cThey edited the original content to make it appear as though my father posted it, which is entirely untrue.<\/p>\n \u201cPlease stop harassing my family. I didn\u2019t think it would have to get to this point.\u201d<\/p>\n The issue has of late become so prevalent that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem took to Instagram to share an official statement.<\/p>\n \u201cMotorsport is built on competition, passion, and commitment, and every race drivers take to the track representing these values,\u201d Ben Sulayem wrote on social media.<\/p>\n \u201cThe passion and excitement that we feel for our sport should unite us and never be twisted into abuse or hate.<\/p>\n \u201cI stand in full sport of Yuki Tsunoda and Franco Colapinto, and I thank them for speaking out against the growing issue of online abuse in motorsport.<\/p>\n \u201cNo one should be subjected to threats, hatred, or discrimination. There is no place for abuse or toxicity in our community.<\/p>\n \u201cThrough the United Against Online Abuse campaign, we are taking decisive action \u2013 raising awareness, providing support, and driving change.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are committed to safeguarding the wellbeing of everyone in our sport, and together we can build a safer, more respectful environment for all.\u201d<\/p>\n Although Doohan has said goodbye to Alpine, the Australian found a home at Haas, which he has joined as its a reserve driver for the 2026 Formula 1 season.<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n