F1: former race director Masi, “I received death threats”

(ANSA) – SYDNEY, JUL 31 – “There were dark days. I felt I was the most hated man on the planet. I received death threats from people who promised to take care of me and my family”. In an interview published by the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Micheal Masi – former Australian Formula 1 race director – recounted what happened to him after last year’s Abu Dhabi GP, the race that decided the world title.

Later removed from the FIA, Masi (44) made several very controversial decisions, which actually benefited Max Verstappen, allowing him to overtake Lewis Hamilton on the last lap and steal the 8th world title from the Mercedes driver.

“I can still remember walking around the streets of London a day or two after the race. I started looking over my shoulder, wondering if the people behind me would attack me,” says Masi. “I got hundreds of messages. They were shocking, racist, offensive, mean. And there were death threats on my Facebook account and especially on LinkedIn, which is supposed to be a professional platform.

Always the same kind of insults “.

“I didn’t go to a specialist, but in hindsight I should have consulted him” confides Masi, who was worried about his own mental health, but chose to “minimize the situation, even towards the FIA”.

Hired by the International Automobile Federation following the sudden death of Charlie Whiting in early 2019, Masi left it permanently in July, to return to live in Australia, “close to the people who support me”.

(HANDLE).

Source: Ansa

Martin

I have been working in the news industry for over 10 years now and I have worked for some of the biggest news websites in the world. My focus has always been on entertainment news, but I also cover a range of other topics. I am currently an author at Global happenings and I love writing about all things pop-culture related.