Callum Ilott has called out “unacceptable” social media behaviour while brushing off death threats which he received over the Long Beach IndyCar race.
The Juncos Hollinger Racing driver had a troubled run during the third race of the season, with an early scrape of the wall causing his right-front tyre to tear apart.
After an unscheduled Lap 6 pit stop, he would get back on the lead lap and stay there for the middle stint of the race before finishing a lap down in 19th position.
However, having unwittingly played a part in the downfall of his Argentine team-mate Agustin Canapino, Ilott ruffled some feathers among a certain section of the IndyCar fanbase.
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He tweeted post-race, “Genuinely impressed by the amount of death threats and abuse I’ve received.
“Definitely a new record by far, really appreciate the effort to help me learn all these new Spanish words
Secure your spot today.
“I’m going to the beach now … hasta luego.”
The Briton’s use of emojis and playful ‘see you later’ (‘hasta luego’) indicated he was not personally shaken, but there was also a serious aspect which he tweeted about on the following day (local time).
“On another note, it’s an important reminder to all new and old fans/people,” wrote Ilott, again on Twitter.
“Respect goes both ways. Although I have thick skin and am used to this behaviour occasionally. One day it will go too far to someone who can’t deal with it as well as others.”
He added in a follow-up tweet, “It’s unacceptable on any level and those who encourage it should have a real think about the consequences of their actions.
“But I would like to thank everyone who has supported me, it means a lot.”
It would appear that the consequences of Ilott’s return to the lead lap, and efforts to hold onto it, caused ire among Canapino supporters.
The Argentine rookie did not pit during the second Caution and hence assumed the official race lead, with effective leader Kyle Kirkwood dropping to second place.
Ilott, though, was pitted late during that yellow period and exited the lane just in front of Canapino, meaning he was effectively at the head of the train as the 27-strong field took the green again.
With Helio Castroneves stuck immediately behind Canapino in the queue and trying to get his lap back, while the front-runners jostled for position, mayhem occurred on the restart lap.
Ilott was on cold tyres and that held up his team-mate, whose sideways moment off Turn 5 caused Castroneves to attack at the left-hander which followed.
The two South Americans tried to negotiate Turn 6 side-by-side, with the Canapino glancing the wall.
That hit led to a nudge from Kirkwood, the eventual winner, who would himself incur contact from Pato O’Ward’s bungled attempt to pass the #27 Honda two corners later.
CLOSE call for @KKirkwoodRacing during the #AGPLB. 😬 pic.twitter.com/kSGvZeU4iC
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) April 17, 2023
Speaking after retiring from the race, Canapino said on the NBC Sports, “Unfortunately, I lost a lot of time behind Callum because when after the pits, I lost a lot of time behind him, respect him.
“After that, Helio tried to overtake me and, in this moment, touched the car, touch the wall, and broke the front-left. Bad luck.
“It’s a shame because we had a good car today with the black tyres, but it’s racing.”
Following Ilott’s tweets, another Argentine race car driver, Martin Ponte, who has a strong social media following, took to Twitter to express his regret over what had transpired.
“Clearly, those who know me know that I will never foment hatred against anyone,” he wrote (translated).
“If it was interpreted that way, I apologise.”
Ilott responded, “A certain level of professionalism is needed when you hold a microphone that sends a message to 100k+ people.
“I suggest you think about the message you want to send to people.
“I suggest you educate yourself on Indycar racing and commentating to a better standard. Be kind please.”
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