![Lewis Hamilton - Lewis Hamilton asks fans to stop Mercedes sabotage conspiracies and back George Russell](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/formula-1/2024/06/20/TELEMMGLPICT000381172995_17189091074960_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqN7kF8Fb6ID_G1m99xXXMy5gojZYlP8f0i9h2tPqCNsM.jpeg?imwidth=680)
Lewis Hamilton asks fans to stop Mercedes sabotage conspiracies and back George Russell
Anonymous email alleged ‘systematic sabotaging’ of driver’s final season at the team
![Lewis Hamilton - Lewis Hamilton asks fans to stop Mercedes sabotage conspiracies and back George Russell](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/formula-1/2024/06/20/TELEMMGLPICT000381172995_17189091074960_trans_NvBQzQNjv4BqN7kF8Fb6ID_G1m99xXXMy5gojZYlP8f0i9h2tPqCNsM.jpeg?imwidth=680)
Lewis Hamilton has called on his fans to stop abusing fellow Mercedes driver George Russell, denying any “foul play” or favouritism on the part of the team.
Hamilton was speaking after an email was sent out by an anonymous Gmail account, claiming to be from a member of the team, which alleged “systematic sabotaging” of Hamilton’s final season with Mercedes and described Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff as “vindictive”.
Russell, who leads Hamilton by 14pts in the drivers’ championship and has beaten the seven-time world champion 8-1 in qualifying this season, has been subjected to abuse on social media by some of Hamilton’s fanbase.
Many are of the opinion that the 39 year-old’s decision to move to Ferrari next season has seen the team begin to favour Russell.
Hamilton, though, denied that was the case. Asked ahead of this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix whether he had a message for his fans who allege “foul play”, he said: “They know that, if you look down the years, we’ve always been a strong team, we’ve always worked really hard together. I think it is easy to get emotional, I even commented in the last race for example just how [many errors he made personally].
“I think we need support, not negativity. I wasn’t actually aware that George was experiencing any negativity. George has done nothing but his best every single weekend and delivering for the team, so he can’t be faulted at all.
“Of course there are always things that can be better within a team and that comes through conversations, through communication, and that’s what we’re consistently working on. But we’re all in the same boat. We’re all working hard together and we all want to finish on a high. We owe that to our long-term relationship.”
![Hamilton and Russell](/https/www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/formula-1/2024/06/20/TELEMMGLPICT000354087846_17189093834870_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqulmngyk1nEPNRM5Qu5tZfreHsZFrEmHQDi0eQN40zhg.jpeg?imwidth=350)
Asked whether he had seen the email from the account babytotoloverboygeorge@gmail.com, which went to the same extensive F1 media list as another anonymous email sent out earlier this season following the Christian Horner allegations, Hamilton said: “I just commented on it so there is not much more to add. I have not seen the email, no.”
Russell called social media a “double-edged sword” and said he had “heard about” the negativity rather than having seen any of it himself.
“I don’t look on Instagram or Twitter to be honest,” he said. “All of the content that goes on there [under his name] is my captions and my messaging. But social media is a double-edged sword. You see funny things on social media, and it keeps you up to date. But on the flip side, everybody, and not just me, in the limelight receives negativity.
“It is not something I have seen. I have heard about it, and it is never nice to hear it, but that is the world we live in at the moment and unfortunately any person in the public eye is facing it.”
The anonymous email claimed Hamilton was being “excluded” and even alleged his safety could be threatened.
“With the exception of Bono [Hamilton’s race engineer Pete Bonnington] and those of us who love Lewis, others are on a dangerous course that could ultimately be life-threatening to Lewis, other drivers, even the public. A cold tyre strategy is a death warrant.
“Toto, George beware and be correct. Not all of us are prepared to be a part of your unfair unprofessional destruction of Lewis for your own self gratification.”
Mercedes declined to comment, but do not believe the email to have come from anyone within the team.
Russell preferred to concentrate on what was a positive weekend in Canada two weekends ago, where he finished third. “I’m feeling really good with the team and with myself,” he said. “And excited to see if the performance in Canada is going to translate this weekend.
“The performance in Montreal was exceptional. I’d be surprised if this weekend was a repeat of being that exceptional. But I think we’ve 100 per cent made a step. And we’re going to be in this fight now. I think we’ve just brought it back and we know where the sweet spot of the car is. And I think we’ve got the tools to be able to get it in there.
“I’ve no doubt to be honest that in Canada, if it was a solely dry race, we would have won that.
I really believe it. So, you know, going into this weekend, we’re excited. But we know that past performance never promises future performance.”