RaceFans has reported:

Franco Colapinto has called on his supporters to stop abusing rival drivers, teammates and other people involved in Formula 1, saying the attacks do not help him. He said the behaviour must change and asked fans to work with him to improve the atmosphere around the series.

“I know it makes you feel very proud when I do well, when I get points, me and the whole team, and I will always be very grateful for that,” Colapinto said. “But there are times when we end up attacking other pilots, other colleagues, my team mates, my mechanics, my engineers, people I work with day by day.”

“I know they are thinking that they are defending me, but they are doing the opposite. They don’t help me. And I really want you to understand that this is what we have to change, all together,” he said. “We have to try to improve as a society, and to help me have a better performance, to help get my dream and my results, that is, to score points, I need you to help stop this, all of us together.”

The FIA and Alpine have issued statements in the past two months condemning abuse that followed the Dutch, Spanish and Azerbaijan grands prix. Neither statement specifically named Colapinto’s supporters, but both identified people who had been targeted, including his Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly and FIA officials. Alpine said last month: “It has become a regular occurrence in recent races and cannot be condoned.”

The online attacks have followed several incidents involving Colapinto and Alpine. After the Chinese Grand Prix, where Esteban Ocon collided with Colapinto, Alpine issued the first in a series of responses to abuse from the Argentine driver’s supporters this year. Some supporters also accused the team of sabotaging Colapinto and giving him equipment that was inferior to Gasly’s.

Other recent flashpoints included penalties Colapinto received for not slowing enough under yellow flags at Zandvoort, a brief delay behind Gasly at the Madring, and the collision in Baku involving the two Alpine drivers and Lando Norris. The incidents prompted discussion among supporters online, with abuse directed at people connected to the team and the series.

Colapinto made his Formula 1 debut with Williams in the second half of 2024. Williams had no place for him in its line-up for the following season, and he joined Alpine, which promoted him to a race seat early in the season in place of Jack Doohan.

Doohan later said he had received death threats from people who wanted him removed from the car. Alpine’s statements condemning abuse did not specifically attribute the threats or other attacks to Colapinto’s supporters, but they named Gasly and FIA officials among those affected by online abuse.

The call from Colapinto comes as the series continues to face abusive messages after race incidents and decisions. He urged supporters who want to back his performance and his goal of scoring points to stop targeting other drivers, colleagues, mechanics, engineers and people he works with.