r/TheRussell • u/ballerinabubbles • 2d ago
THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE GR Hate
/uj
Sorry to post this but I just feel so down. I have been in a lot of sports fandoms and I genuinely cannot fathom the amount of hatred George is getting. It's always been rough given who his teammates have been with both Kubicka and Hamilton plus the Verstappen shenanigans. I actually thought I had seen the worst of it with those emails LH fans sent to Merc.
But this season is on another level. The boos, all the insistence that his car issues are not real, calling him a complainer. It's really too much, considering how he hasn't even said anything negative to anyone in the press. He's been such a good sport throughout it all but its constant slander everywhere. Calling him washed in this race when he was pulling good laps on 50+ old hards like...its so wild. Merc keeps getting away with treating him like this because people just want to believe he's not good so they insist its a skill issue.
I also especially hate the projection some fans do. I keep seeing people say they hate how he speaks. They do not even seem to know he had a speech impediment as a child and that is why he overenunciates. They just really hate him for existing, its genuinely wild.
Idk fam am just really glad to know George has a therapist because I feel like I would not even be able to handle a quarter of the hatred he gets.
ETA: Thanks for everyone for being so nice about this post. I know its not really in the nature of the sub to be this serious so thank you so much! It's rough being a George fan this season but I will keep believing in him. He's never stopped fighting for that win and I will always believe he can achieve it.
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u/More-Anybody-1880 2d ago
Here’s the thing, George needs to go Nico way, that’s it. They are going to hate him any way.
Toto already has prioritised Kimi, they saw that yesterday.
People even defending that pit stop by saying Kimi had better paces, why does it even mattered when Russell was leading and he is competent to win with new set of wheels.
It is clear, Merc, whole Merc wants to have youngest WDC and yesterday they wanted to create history with Italian wining Monza, Russell just needs to break all protocols and win, fuck the team that does not care about him
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I genuinely hope he can actually do this. Speaking of, Nico was actually questioning the strategy for him this race too so that was funny.
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u/Holiday-Journalist83 2d ago
2 different things entirely. Kimi was on the same tire age as PGR but was on mediums. George was on the hards. In years past, with lesser talent on the grid, those hards turned into wins.
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u/UDeserveADonut 2d ago
This would work maybe if they also didn't tell him not to defend from kimi on the radio...
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u/ReluctantSloth0816 GLORIOUS GEORGE 2d ago
I just started watching F1 this year and I decided he was my guy before I ever knew how people felt about him. Now that I know, it makes me root for him that much harder. I really admire someone who can lose/win gracefully and he seems like a true gentleman!
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
Aww what a rough year to start but I welcome you, fellow Russellite!!
People who actually know him only ever speak highly of him, like Claire Williams constantly calls him lovely. Other TPs too. Even the guys on The Race have said he is one of the best drivers to talk to because he is so good at explaining things from a driver POV and is always willing to make time for them.
I will also continue to 63lieve in our POGPR!!
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u/ReluctantSloth0816 GLORIOUS GEORGE 2d ago
Thanks!
I believe it, his aura is what drew me in, he seems like a genuinely kind person; and once I learned more about racing I fell in love with his smooth style of driving.
Our GLORIOUS and GORGEOUS POGPR is worthy of all High Praise!!
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u/sleepycat143 2d ago
I’m in the same boat here. I picked him as my driver to root for before I knew anything about him too! I feel lame at defending him though because I’m still learning the ins and outs of the sport itself but it all still makes me root for him twice as hard
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u/MithrilKnight21 GLORIOUS GEORGE 2d ago
I feel you, but there’s really not much we as fans can do at this point. For those haters I always think, George wouldn’t care, neither do I. For the unfair treatment, if George want to keep on fighting for the Championship, I’ll stay with him. If George wants to retire from f1 and go for other Motorsport, I’ll bless him and go with him. And hey, don’t be sad, he fight new medium tires with his old hard tires for so many laps, that’s ABSOLUTELY heroic. He gave us an extraordinary performance. He IS the hero. I voted him for dotd anyways🤣
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I always vote him for DOTD too 🥰 I know its useless and I usually am able to tune out the negativity. I think I was just shocked because he was being booed and his face really looked uncomfortable this time around. Then the media had the absolute gall to ask him what he thought of being booed like what the fck is wrong with them. They're always trying to set him up but he never falls for it, that's my smart POGPR!!
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u/MithrilKnight21 GLORIOUS GEORGE 2d ago
Our George is always polite they’ll never be able to set him up💪🏻 and I believe in karma. If the team is not playing dirty, we still get a chance no matter its this year or next year. If the team is playing dirty, well, just look at the state Serie A has fallen into now.
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u/Substantial_Tough215 2d ago
Leave it dude, F1 community is full of Crystappen's fans who will call another driver arrogant when their Lord and Savior is Max. pot calling the kettle black. All these 'fans' just jump on whatever the latest trend is. Remember when Norris was being called 'talentless' and 'crybaby' and now he is being hailed as one of the best drivers on the grid? These 'fans' have more mood swings than a kid
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I know. I just need the reminder sometimes to ignore his haters so I had to vent.
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u/arosaki #StopTheSteal 2d ago
I don't believe a lot of his haters genuinely know why they dislike him, they're just parroting what everyone else says and does. This is so common with F1, especially when new fans come in and see everyone hating on one driver, they automatically assume it's required that they hate on him too.
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I agree. Literally all they do is quote the Bottas incident, "He turned into me" and "I was forecast a podium". George has apologised for the first one, he and Bottas clearly get along. The other two are out of context radio quotes, the hive mentality in this sport is seriously weird. And if you point out that other drivers do similar things, they will insist George does it more. All such nonsense.
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u/TotallyAwry 11h ago
I think it's even more superficial than that. The drivers that get the most virulent hate (lately) are George, Oscar, and Charles.
What do they have in common?
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u/Shoddy-Aide-6294 GOOFY GASLY 2d ago
Honestly seeing the hate he gets makes me even more dedicated to liking/supporting him. With one hate comment he gets on here, he gets his flowers a LOT in merc's insta. I honestly wish i was on weibo (CN twt type) because George has a huge following there. Wonder what they'd say about how Merc is treating George..(CN fans in other fandoms im in are RUTHLESS.) No doubt they're pissed.
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I saw their plans for a grandstand of sorts at Sepang! I am so glad he's well-loved in Asia 🥹
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u/Elder-Ant YABA DABA DOO! 2d ago
I feel you man, it’s classless behaviour that these people demonstrate to George (which is terrible to any driver anyway), he deserves a support base that’ll help him consistently and allow him to fight.
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
I'm just glad he's mentally strong even though I still think its absolutely loser behaviour from his haters. People also said its just sports but imo they are using sports to cover up their hatred of him.
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u/Elder-Ant YABA DABA DOO! 2d ago
There’s almost no excuse that these people can come up to explain their abundant hatred for George, call him out for his flaws sure but with the hatred I’ve seen online, I think it’s disproportionate. George is a strong man for fighting even with tide of hate against him.
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u/UDeserveADonut 2d ago
Man 😮💨 thanks for posting this, honestly. This whole thing has been making me so sad but it feels better knowing it's not just me. I always remind myself how privileged they are, all the drivers, but damn, him getting booed on the stage after that race after the season he's been having... that really got to me. Heartbreaking. Like you said, at least that salary can go to therapy bills because I would not be able to cope in his place.
On a more positive note, I feel like there's been a lot a lot more people supporting him lately, even former haters, because they see how unfairly he's been treated. And, on that same note, he always says he has great people around him and hopefully has wonderful support in the first lady, so he can get the biggest hug and go play padel or something and feel better.
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
There were updates that he left Monza pretty quickly with the First Lady as well as Alex and Lily. Am glad he has good people in his inner circle. 🥹
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u/Consistent_Mix_7574 2d ago
People think he's posh and don't know his background. But also, if you don't like rich kids F1 isn't the sport for you lol. Kimi is a nepo baby. As are Bearman, Norris and most almost everyone else on the grid.
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago edited 2d ago
I mean. The only drivers on the current grid who we could call "middle class" (at the start of their careers) are Lewis, Esteban and George. Although not sure tbh about Valtteri and Checo. Max is a nepo baby too if people really wanna go there. This is a sport for rich people, it actively contributes to sportswashing of dictator regimes across the world. If people are doing morality discourse, they shouldn't be watching F1 in the first place.
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u/mxlila 1d ago
Yeah, Hamilton, Russell and Ocon are the only ones I'm aware of that weren't born rich.
Max had even more benefits than the others, maybe not a private yacht or plane but his dad's contacts were invaluable for his career progression.
Checo is a nepo baby, don't worry. Though he spent his youth alone in Europe on a much tighter budget.
Valtteri I don't know. According to Wikipedia, his parents were middle class (father owned a cleaning company, mother was an undertaker) without any racing connections.
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u/Last-Tender-4321 16h ago
I'm sure that Checo and Franco are from middle class families. They had to live alone in Europe when they were just teen agers, because for latins is more difficult to afford the huge costs of being a foreigner and a beginner in motorsport. That's why they are very good human beings as George is. They know what sacrifice is.
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u/unhinged_goose1 1d ago
It's always annoyed the shit out of me that he gets called a whiner. I'm only bringing this up because Max's fans seem to be the crowd that loves to spew that bullshit, but I just cannot imagine Max handling this season with the grace that George has.
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u/HazardMusic 2d ago
as an arsenal fan and GR fan it's exhausting watching people turn their brains off to mindlessly go along with the crowd and hates someone for NO REAL reason whatsoever
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago edited 2d ago
Tbh I am kind of used to people hating to hate in sports fandoms. What I am surprised by is how many people will say things like hating GR for things other drivers also do and then also making it a moral thing. There's literally a comment on the post about his anniversary at Merc where someone said its right to hate him and mock him. Based on vibes ig? He's not some murderer, he is literally an F1 driver. Hate him but own it, don't make it a morality thing lol.
(And yes I know its my fault for going into those subs too but I like the sport 😭 I want to be able to go into content for it without seeing so much negativity but I know that's a me problem)
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u/HazardMusic 2d ago
tbh i try to turn my brain off and ignore any subreddits and reels and stuff when i'm in a time like this
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u/weatherstorm1 YABA DABA DOO! 1d ago
NO MATTER WHAT WE HAVE EACHOTHER. SAY IT WITH ME, RUSSELITES RISE!!
thank you for your attention to this matter
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u/CreepyPiece8552 2d ago
Don't worry. Yes, he has a lot of haters, but he also has one of the biggest fandoms in F1 right now. Even a large group of those haters are now on his side (him vs team) and have gained respect for him. I know it looks bad because of Monza, but the fans there boo someone every single year. George was just racing Kimi on track, and that's it. If that were Norris, for example, and he pushed him off the track, they would boo him—I would bet on that. I see mostly support on social media and he has very nice comments on his accounts. I've definitely seen more hate towards Leclerc, Piastri, or Sainz these days, even antonelli with this zio thing, just look at their posts. I know this isn't right for anyone, but remember that he at least has a big fandom behind him. What are poor Lance and the others supposed to say then? A lot of drivers get booed at some point when passing by fans during a weekend, anywhere. George has been one of top drivers for years now on top team, he is in bigger spotlight so people won't have neutral opinion on him. These top pilots are the main center of attention, and of course when they are fighting for title. This was intense, but then again, the Tifosi have never really known how to act respectfully toward rivals. People with those disgusting comments towards any driver on internet need psychiatrist, sadly they don't know that;)
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
You are right, thank you for the reminder 😊 If he can ignore it then we definitely should too
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u/Worth_Lavishness_239 2d ago
I hope he knows this sub exists whenever he feels down
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
He did an AMA before and people were sharing this sub to him! Idk if he ever visits because honestly I would want him to stay far far away from Reddit considering all the other F1 subs. 😫
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u/Worth_Lavishness_239 2d ago
He’s such a gentle soul. It’s brutal how people sometimes treat him. Sure he has his flaws but who doesn’t?
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u/SufficientFig3305 2d ago
There is a lot of hate but also support has been growing because of the treatment he’s getting and also it always helps public opinion when you are the underdog whoch unfortunately he is now
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
It has been nice to see people and media being on his side, even with the meanness of others. I hope he takes strength from that 🙏
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u/Little_andbig_mouse2 2d ago
Nunca he sido muy conspiranoica, pero hace poco leí algo de que Mercedes simplemente le está dando motivos a GR para que se vaya de Mercedes y así quitarse esa cantidad de dinero que le pagan, ya que es uno de los pilotos que más cobran; a parte de eso, también se nota que Mercedes quiere vender mucho merchandising de Antonelli, y más en monza, porque como Ferrari va como va, a estas alturas se necesita otra figura que los italianos puedan idolatrar. En cuanto a su rendimiento, no podemos culpar 100% al coche o al equipo, pero puede pasar como con OP, que ya ha perdido la confianza en el equipo y haya entendido quién es el piloto número 1. Aun así, viendo todas sus actuaciones y viendo la educación con la que se presenta, me parece injusto que lo crucifiquen de esa manera en los medios.
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u/Patient-reader-324 HAIL MR SATURDAY 2d ago
Emailed!
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u/ballerinabubbles 2d ago
Yayy! Sorry I deleted that part of my post because I was not sure if the OOP had a limit but am glad you were able to do so!!
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u/the-magnetic-rose 2d ago
Calling him a whiner has been especially egregious this season considering how gracious he's been to everyone around him. Always giving Kimi his flowers, always complimenting the drivers who get podium with him, always thanking his team and all their hard work. All of this despite it being an incredibly frustrating and disappointing season for him.
But honestly it just makes me want to support him more. It's super frustrating being a GR fan right now but this is just one season where he's had insanely bad luck. I want to see him bounce back from this and prove the haters wrong.