Dutch Grand Prix chief Jan Lammers slammed the antics of the Red Bull Ring crowd and promised Lewis Hamilton that only "real" Max Verstappen fans will be at Zandvoort later this season.
The Austrian Grand Prix weekend was marred by reports of racist, sexist and homophobic abuse suffered by some fans at the hands of their fellow race-goers. F1 chiefs intervened with a statement, while Hamilton said he was "disgusted" to hear what was happening in the grandstands.
And the Brit himself was targeted by some fans on Friday, as he crashed his Mercedes while on a hot lap. A large portion of the crowd – those wearing orange in support of Verstappen and Red Bull – was heard cheering despite not knowing whether or not the driver was okay.
But Lammers is not expecting a repeat at the defending world champion's home race later this season. Asked if he fears more crowd trouble at Zandvoort in September, he told Reuters : "I think the real Orange fan would like to make a statement of showing now how it's done, so I don't expect any trouble.
"I have a feeling that this will be the best time to go because everybody will be on good behaviour of course. I'm pretty confident that when the Dutch GP is here, the Dutch public would like to show how we receive a seven-time world champion and how we go about each other."
Lammers described some of the abusers' actions in Austria as "pathetic and very embarrassing". He also claimed that those "real" Verstappen fans are "extremely upset" about those scenes at the Red Bull Ring.
He also pledged that the crowd at Zandvoort will be different to the one in Austria, which he said was made up largely of younger men wanting to enjoy a party rather than an F1 race. "People in Holland, they come with their families and kids," he said.
And after asserting that "you cannot call [abusers at the Austrian GP] fans of Verstappen", he added: "When you go to support your favourite, in this case Max, then you want to behave in a way that he can be proud of you and this is embarrassing."
