News Summary

Pierre Gasly has condemned the threats and online abuse directed at him and his family following Alpine’s late-race confusion involving Franco Colapinto at the Spanish GP.

The controversy began when Colapinto caught Gasly during the closing stages at Madring. The Argentine was running seventh and defending from Oscar Piastri, while Gasly was completing an extremely long stint on hard tyres before his delayed pit stop.

Alpine warned Gasly that Colapinto was approaching but did not instruct the Frenchman to surrender the position. Colapinto repeatedly requested a swap over the radio as Piastri reduced the gap behind him to only 0.2s.

Colapinto eventually retained the position, but the incident produced an aggressive reaction on social media. Gasly said some messages went beyond criticism of his performance and targeted his girlfriend and other relatives.

“Personally, I find it a little bit disturbing for our sport,” Gasly told media ahead of the Azerbaijan GP.

“I’m a top athlete, so I know I’m exposed. It’s always been the case, but the extent of the threats and attacks I find completely inappropriate, especially when it reaches family members, my girlfriend and others. I don’t think that should be the case.”

Gasly accepted that criticism forms part of competing at the highest level of Formula 1, but argued that anonymity cannot justify threatening drivers or their families.

“You can be liked or disliked, and that’s completely fine,” he continued. “But there is a certain line that should not be crossed just because you’re behind a screen and a keyboard. These lines are crossed too many times.”

Gasly also confirmed that Alpine reviewed the Madrid incident internally. He stressed that the team had not explicitly instructed him to let Colapinto through and said the matter between the drivers had been resolved.

“We obviously discussed it with the team,” he explained. “There wasn’t a call for an actual swap, but it has all been discussed and everything is clear.”

Colapinto defends Gasly and asks fans to stop

Colapinto backed his team-mate’s position and rejected the abusive response despite his frustration during the race.

“It’s never nice to receive that, even more when it’s happening to the team I’m racing for,” Colapinto said. “We are team-mates and we get on very well together. We are playing for the same result and have the same target, which is to make Alpine better.”

The Argentine acknowledged the passion of his supporters but insisted that abuse does not help him or the team.

“The way to support us as a team is to push the team forward and stay strong together. Hopefully, it doesn’t keep happening,” he added.

Colapinto said Alpine had examined how the situation developed and agreed on changes intended to prevent a repeat. Gasly and Colapinto now head to Baku for the Azerbaijan GP, held from 24–26 September, with the race taking place on Saturday.

F1 today: FAQ

What time is Singapore GP sprint qualifying today?

Sprint qualifying starts at 20:30 Singapore time on Friday, October 9, equivalent to 13:30 BST in the UK, 08:30 ET in the United States and Canada, and 18:00 IST in India. The session determines the starting grid for Saturday’s sprint.

Who was fastest in Singapore GP FP1?

George Russell topped FP1 with a 1:32.274, driving Mercedes’ older W17 aerodynamic specification. Charles Leclerc finished second, 0.198s behind, followed by Lando Norris in third. Kimi Antonelli was seventh with the upgraded Mercedes, while Gabriel Bortoleto finished 16th.

Why is George Russell using the old Mercedes at the Singapore GP?

Mercedes is comparing its previous W17 specification with the aerodynamic upgrade introduced at Sepang. Russell is using the older package, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli retains the new version. Russell led FP1, but differences in tyre compounds and run programmes mean the result alone does not establish which specification is faster.

Why did Gasly receive online abuse after the Spanish GP?

Some supporters blamed him for delaying Franco Colapinto while the Argentine was defending a points position from Oscar Piastri.