F1 fan calls out feral behaviour from men at Grand Prix weekend

A woman is calling out male behaviour after repeatedly being harassed at the Grand Prix, saying sporting venues are not safe for women.

A woman is calling out male behaviour after repeatedly being harassed at the GP, saying sporting venues are still not safe for women.

Kate and her friends have been going to the Grand Prix in Melbourne for the last four years, after a friend introduced them to the sport via Netflix series Drive To Survive.

However for the last three years a horrific incident has taken place through the yearly girls’ trip, making them question whether they will return for a fifth year.

“The first year I went was 2022, and nothing happened because I had my partner with me,” Kate told news.com.au.

But, the next year, the women were on the bus home and there were some “very intoxicated men” sitting in front of the group.

A group of women say they were harassed by some “very intoxicated men” on the bus after leaving the GP. Picture: David Caird

“They struck up a conversation because we were all Ferrari fans and it became very inappropriate. One of them was running his hands up and down our thighs. It was gross,” she said.

“He just wouldn’t quit, almost using the fact we were all Ferrari fans as an excuse as something we can and should bond over.”

In 2024 an older man sat in front of the group in their grandstand and he blatantly took images of the women, making them feel uncomfortable. For two days they were too scared to sit in their seats. Instead, they spent time with security, Aus GP staff and filed a police report.

“We ended on missing out on the cars on track. All the police really did was get him to delete the photos, which I get there isn’t a whole lot more that can be done. The Aus GP staff were great, they were trying to get us different seats but we got these ones specifically as they were right in front of the podium,” she said.

“We didn’t want to move out of them.”

However, this year things took a turn for the worse with two disgusting attacks on the women. The first took place on the Melbourne Walk where Kate heard a commotion behind her, and realised her best friend was yelling. She rushed over to find out what had happened.

A group of men had grabbed the women, pushed their faces against the women and started taking selfies.

“They were refusing to delete them. They were very, very drunk — I could smell the alcohol on them,” Kate said.

“My friends were distraught and very uncomfortable. Eventually, my friend had to take the phone from the man and delete the photos herself.”

The group said it has made them reconsider going again. Picture: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

She said women around them stepped in, taking photos and images of the men. But, other men standing around them — including security — did nothing to help.

“There was no one really there to help us when we needed them,” she said.

At another point during the weekend, the group were having lunch when a man approached Kate’s best friend. Kate asked him to move along.

“He lost his sh*t and started calling us sl*ts in Italian and pretending to spit at us,” Kate said.

“We went and got security then. There is one Aus GP staff member who is very good, he helped us last year, and immediately sprung into action.”

Kate said the issues hadn’t been brought to Aus GP’s attention at this stage — but said it wasn’t the organisation that was the issue.

“This isn’t an issue just with the Australian Grand Prix. It’s not just an issue with Formula 1, this is about women not being safe or respected in sporting spaces because men think they belong to them,” she said.

A spokesperson from Australian Grand Prix told news.com.au: “The safety and wellbeing of fans, staff and all event participants is our top priority and we are looking into this matter. AGPC maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward harassment and anti-social behaviour at our events.”

Kate is now raising awareness and calling out the behaviour, as it “won’t get better” unless someone does. She said the reaction to her words has been mostly positive, with a lot of people confirming they’d seen the whole thing on Melbourne Walk.

Many other women also shared their own heartbreaking experiences — from all over the world — about not feeling welcome in sporting spaces.

But, some called Kate a “man hater” and claimed she was “making it up”.

Kate said there have been talks about going back, but also asked why should they have to miss out because “men can’t control themselves”.

Originally published as F1 fan calls out feral behaviour from men at Grand Prix weekend