Lewis Hamilton takes responsibility for his accident with Russell
Lewis Hamilton apologized to his team and teammate for his lapse in judgment shortly after the start of the Qatar Grand Prix, which sent him into the gravel.
Toto Wolff was not present in Doha this weekend, recovering from a knee operation, but one can imagine him banging his fist on the table in response to the crash of his two drivers this Sunday. While Max Verstappen, in pole position, had a good start to keep the first place, Lewis Hamilton was trying to gain an advantage over George Russell approaching the 1st turn, from the outside. A movement that led to a contact between the two teammates, propelling the seven-time world champion into the gravel. “I’ve been taken out by my own teammate”, Lewis Hamilton complained on the radio, definitively out of the race.
Yet, it is indeed him who is at fault in this accident, a fact that George Russell did not fail to point out. The latter suffered damage to his single-seater but was able to continue the race, not without first going through the pits and falling to last place. However, he managed a great comeback to finish in 4th position, after a poor choice of soft tires towards the end of the race.
After viewing the images of the accident, Lewis Hamilton however admitted his fault and apologized to his team. “Obviously, it’s very disappointing and I offer my sincere apologies to everyone at the factory. It was probably just a racing incident, butI take full responsibility. I don’t think George really had anywhere to go“, he stated to reporters after the race.
The matter is therefore closed, but let’s note that the tension had already risen between the two teammates in Singapore, where George Russell made a mistake on the last lap trying to overtake Hamilton. It remains to be seen if this trend will continue at the next Grand Prix in Austin, United States.
