“There were some dark days,” Michael Masi reveals to have received death threats following the title drama in Abu Dhabi
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Michael Masi
Michael Masi, unfortunately, was the headline after the end of the season finale in Abu Dhabi, which saw Max Verstappen coming up trumps in an enthralling battle with the seven time world champion, Lewis Hamilton. But, this victory came under controversial circumstances which saw the then race director being removed from his position but was still a part of the organization, with his role to be decided in the coming month.
Let’s dive into the intricate details of why he was removed from his post. Lewis Hamilton held a commanding lead of the race from the very beginning but everything changed when Nicholas Latifi crashed into the wall with few laps to go. This meant that Michael Masi had to assess the situation and decide whether we could have any more racing action. It was eventually decided that we would have lap to decide the race.
But, the most shocking decision was when Masi changed his mind from his earlier decision to allow the lapped cars to overtake the safety car. This allowed Max Verstappen to pip Lewis Hamilton on his fresher set of tyres. This led to widespread criticism of Masi. Most recently, FIA decided to cut off all the ties with him as they decided to not give him any other position in the organization.
Michael Masi talks about the treatment meted out to him after the season finale
After respectfully parting ways with the FIA, Michael Masi has talked about the treatment received from the fans after the race. He said, “There were some dark days. Absolutely, I felt like I was the most hated man in the world. I got death threats. People saying they were going to come after me and my family.“
“They were shocking. Racist, abusive, vile, they called me every name under the sun. I didn’t want to talk to anyone.“
“Not even family and friends. I only talked to my close family – but very briefly. It did have a physical impact, but it was more mental. I just wanted to be in a bubble. I had no desire to talk to them. I just wanted to be alone, which was very challenging. The whole experience has made me a much stronger person.”
The kind of treatment meted out to Michael Masi was absolutely unacceptable as fans need to understand that he is also a human being and he is also allowed to make mistakes just like anyone else.
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Shubham Bajpai
(776 Articles Published)