The FIA has hit out following online abuse of the Zandvoort stewards in the wake of Franco Colapinto penalty.

Some of those new fans of F1 might not be interested in "clipping", "throttle angle" or "the brake pressure percentage to overtake", but they sure know how to take to social media to abuse anyone and everyone that they deem has compromised their favourite driver.

On Sunday, Franco Colapinto was given a drive through - and 2 penalty points - for overtaking Yuki Tsunoda under yellow flags.

The Argentine was behind the Japanese driver entering Turn 14 and overtook in the double yellow flag sector before the Line at the end of Lap 1," said the stewards. Normally such an infringement requires a 10s stop and go penalty, but the stewards acknowledged the complications caused by the significant amount of debris on track following Max Verstappen's crash and took this into account as mitigating circumstances.

The Alpine driver was subsequently given another 10s penalty (and a penalty point) for failing to slow under a single yellow flag in Turn 3.

Fans of the Argentine were quick to voice their anger at the decisions, as was Colapinto himself.

"It's tricky to judge in those conditions when you're fighting on Lap 1, making a move and it's all wet and damp and on the banking, and there are parts of the car flying around," said the Argentine post-race of the initial penalty.

"I saw a very, very late yellow flag when I was finishing my overtake," he continued. "And it was clearly much more dangerous to slam on the brakes and accelerate in the middle of the straight. On the banking and on the wet, when everyone was spinning. So it's a very tricky one.

"I feel that, even though the rules are written, they should be much more flexible. And they should have the criteria to also understand what's safer or a bit more unsafe. If someone is going 30km/h slower in the same part of the track, you're overtaking them and a yellow flag comes in, there's not a lot you can do. It's very tricky to react to that. I feel they have been extremely harsh. It's their job. But it's also their job to be a bit flexible and understand the situation.

"I think especially what is more dangerous than the other, when the grip is so low, and the conditions are like that. To me, it's just a bit harsh. I think for both, for me and Lindblad, but especially a drive-through, it kills your race. It feels too much. But it is what it is."

However, it wasn't only the driver's fans who criticised the decision.

Step forward Sean Summers, Chief Marketing Officer of Mercado Libre, an e-commerce site popular in south and central America, and a sponsor of Colapinto.

"The stewards are killing the integrity of F1," he posted on social media. "This season they are proving to be horrible and impacting race results.

"Incompetence? Dishonesty? Both?" he added. "Something is seriously broken in that organisation's culture."

Aware of the rising tension, Alpine stepped in and issued a statement.

"As a team, we work closely with the sport's governing body on the rules of engagement on track to ensure fair and exciting racing and, most importantly, safety," it read.

"We fully trust the FIA and the stewards when it comes to the policing of these rules and the application of sporting penalties during a live race scenario.

"We believe the penalties applied for yellow flag infringements during the opening laps of the Dutch Grand Prix were indeed harsh, but acknowledge they fit the punishment based on the letter of the law and were consistently applied across all competitors and is something we can review and learn from as a team."

The sport's governing body, which established the United Against Online Abuse campaign, then reacted with its own statement.

"Following the Dutch Grand Prix, FIA stewards were targeted with online abuse after applying sporting penalties in line with FIA regulations," it read.

"The United Against Online Abuse Coalition condemns all forms of abuse and harassment. Disagreement with decisions is part of sport, but it must never justify threats or personal attacks.

"In 2023, the FIA launched the United Against Online Abuse Coalition after a steward faced targeted abuse following the United States Grand Prix. We urge everyone engaging with our sport to do so with respect and responsibility, online and offline."

Sadly, such abuse is common these days as the sport determinedly attracts a new type of audience focussed on the personalities rather than the racing.

The situation is not helped by the likes of Johnny Herbert, who was dropped as a steward due to his outside activities, who, following criticism of a perceived bias against Max Verstappen, unbelievably claimed that British stewards will obviously be biased towards British drivers.