It’s been a memorable week for the Hamilton family, thanks to Lewis, who finally made his long-awaited appearance in Ferrari red. But while the seven-time World Champion went on to drive the SF-23 in Fiorano in front of a thousand admirers, his brother Nicolas struggled with a social media fraud.
Nicolas took to Instagram to ask his followers to stay alert. There was an account on TikTok, that was using his name and picture to get in touch with people and trick them into paying money. Nicolas stated that the account was “talking to people about their disabilities and asking them for money for a meet and greet.”
“So sorry for the harm this account has caused, it’s not me,” he added, and also urged all his followers to report the fake account. The person who impersonated Hamilton’s brother did a fairly convincing job, amassing more than 6k followers, which made it look more genuine.
The bio too read “limit defier, monster energy athlete, software brand ambassador.” Thankfully, the fact that Nicolas took prompt action—and presumably, so did his followers—helped him resolve this matter within hours.
Nicolas wins against the person taking advantage of his disability
Nicolas has not had an easy life. He got cerebral palsy at just 18 months and had a very hard time learning how to walk and move about on his own. He always looked up to Lewis, his paternal half-brother, for inspiration. And the fact that Lewis went on to become the greatest F1 driver of all time also drove Nicolas to carve out a career of his own.
Nicolas overcame his disability to compete in the British Touring Car Championship, becoming a beacon of hope for those whose disabilities stand in the way of their dreams.
Lewis Hamilton went undercover to support his brother over the weekend.
Nicolas Hamilton, who races with cerebral palsy, finished 6th
That brotherly love ❤️ pic.twitter.com/oxNIZVuZh8
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) April 24, 2023
As such, someone taking advantage of this part of his life and scamming people warranted urgent action on the 32-year-old’s part. Thankfully, TikTok took the complaints and reports seriously, and the fake account was banned. “Great job team, love you all,” he wrote in a subsequent story, thanking his fans.
