'Please be better': Daniel Ricciardo rallies around Lewis Hamilton after abuse

F1 champion Lewis Hamilton has been subjected to disgusting racial abuse after his controversial incident with Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix on the weekend and a number of stars have rallied around him.

The controversy surrounding Hamilton's lap one incident with championship rival Verstappen at the British Grand Prix intensified after the race, with the relationship between the two seemingly souring in public.

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Hamilton and Verstappen were engaged in a thrilling battle leading up to the fast-paced Copse Corner at Silverstone, which sees cars approaching at nearly 300 km/ph.

Red Bull's Verstappen had most of his car in front of Hamilton as he turned in, but the Mercedes champion had darted to the inside in a bid to complete a daring overtake.

The move didn't come off though, with Hamilton's left front tyre hitting Verstappen's rear left, sending him flying off the track and into the tyre barrier, with the devastating impact registering more than 50g of force.

Verstappen was taken to hospital for precautionary scans and was later discharged, unhurt.

Hamilton went on to claim the British GP and fervently celebrated in front of his home crowd, which drew the ire of some on social media.

But in a horrible turn, Hamilton's social media has been flooded with racist abuse.

F1 rallies around Lewis Hamilton after online abuse

Hamilton, 36, was targeted online hours after the victory, with racist messages including monkey emojis sent as replies to a post by his Mercedes team on Instagram.

"The racist abuse directed at Hamilton during and after the British Grand Prix is unacceptable and we've removed a number of comments from Instagram," a spokesperson for Facebook, which owns Instagram, said in a statement on Monday.

"In addition to our work to remove comments and accounts that repeatedly break our rules, there are safety features available, including comment filters and message controls, which can mean no one has to see this type of abuse.

"No single thing will fix this challenge overnight but we're committed to the work to keep our community safe from abuse."

In a joint statement, Mercedes, Formula One and motor sports governing body FIA condemned the abuse of Hamilton and sought punishment for those guilty.

"These people have no place in our sport and we urge that those responsible should be held accountable for their actions," the statement read.

"Formula One, the FIA, the drivers and teams are working to build a more diverse and inclusive sport and such unacceptable instances of online abuse must be highlighted and eliminated."

The F1 community, including Aussie McLaren star Ricciardo, quickly rallied around the motorsport legend after the sickening abuse.

with AAP

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