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The RACER Mailbag, September 20
Welcome to the RACER Mailbag, where you can send your questions to mailbag@racer.com. Please note that not every question will be published, but we will answer as many as we can. Questions received after 3pm ET on Monday will be included in the following week’s edition.
There has been a disturbing level of hate directed towards Callum Ilott from fans of Augustin Canapino, and it’s concerning that JHR and Canapino have remained silent about it. Ricardo Juncos’s insinuations in an interview that Ilott was to blame for the incident and questioning his place in the team could be a contributing factor to the rumored McLaren alliance with the No. 77 not going ahead.
The way JHR handled the attacks on Ilott, both in April and now, was disappointing and their delayed and weak response speaks volumes. This raises a larger issue for IndyCar, as if Canapino returns, there is a risk of similar incidents happening with other drivers. IndyCar needs to meet with the Juncos Hollinger team and establish an action plan for handling such situations if Canapino will be back in 2024.
In regards to online abuse, Ilott has received threats and abuse from not only Argentinian fans, but fans of Canapino in general. IndyCar needs to take concrete steps to protect Ilott and Juncos-Hollinger should explicitly condemn the behavior of these fans. It is unacceptable that Ilott’s partner is afraid to visit Argentina, and others should not feel safe either. IndyCar and the team need to address this issue promptly and effectively.
Source: Racer
