The latest reaction from Imola
George Russell accused Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas of trying to kill him following their 200mph crash in the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
Williams' driver Russell was attempting to pass Bottas around the outside of the Finn's Mercedes on the high-speed run to the opening corner in Imola on lap 32. The British driver dipped his front-right tyre onto the damp grass, causing him to lose control of his machine and spear into the side of Bottas' Mercedes. Both men ended up in the wall with significant damage sustained to their respective cars.
A furious Russell, 23, yelled over the radio: "What the fuck was he doing? Honestly. Is he a fucking prick or what?"
Russell, a member of the Mercedes junior academy and hopeful of a promotion from Williams to replace Bottas as Lewis Hamilton's team-mate next year, left the cockpit of his damaged machine before racing over to confront the Finn. Russell leaned into the Mercedes and slapped Bottas' crash helmet. Bottas raised his middle finger in response.
The race was suspended for 30 minutes to clean up the streams of debris from the accident.
"I asked him if he was trying to kill us both," said Russell. "We're going incredibly fast and we know the conditions. In his eyes he's not really fighting for anything. Ninth for him is nothing, but for us it is everything. I'm going for absolutely everything. I have never had a crash at the end of the straight when we are absolutely flat out.
"We have all seen the dangers of motorsport, and to be honest, I would have reacted the same if I was battling for the win, for ninth or for last because I felt it was unnecessary and avoidable.
"Your heart stops when you crash at over 200mph. You don't know what is going to happen. My anger at the time is that I thought he had put us both in harm's way and it was an incredibly scary incident, but fortunately we both walked away without any battle scars. However, it could have been very different." PA Media
I’ll leave you with Giles Richards’ report on the afternoon’s drama. Thanks for reading!
And here’s Lewis Hamilton: “Congratulations to Max, he did a fantastic job today – just solid work from him. And also to Lando, what an awesome job and it’s so good to see McLaren back up there. On my side it was not the greatest days, it’s the first time I’ve made a mistake in a long time. But I’m grateful I was able to bring the car home today.
“A bit unfortunate but I’m really really grateful we were able to get going again, and to get some points for the team was really important today.”
Max Verstappen speaks: “It was very challenging out there, especially the beginning. I think we managed everything well, despite the small moment at my restart. It’s a long season, got to stay calm!”
Well that was one helluva race. Despite the lack of any sorts of contest for first place, we had rain, crashes, spins, red flags, and overtakes in abundance. Latifi crashed out in the first lap, Perez and Vettel both earned 10sec penalties, Hamilton looked to have ended his afternoon by skidding into the gravel, and Bottas and Russell escaped unharmed after a huge crash – and all before the at the midway point!
Max Verstappen wins the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix
The Red Bull driver, flawless today, sails over the finish line 22secs ahead of Hamilton, who did brilliantly to recover after a mid-race disaster. Norris, Leclerc, Sainz, Ricciardo, Stroll, Gasly, Raikkonen and Ocon make up the top 10.
Updated
Lap 62: Mazepin spins but gets going again, while Vettel, in 14th, retires with a gearbox issue. A day to forget for him.
Lap 61: And Hamilton takes fastest lap too. That’d keep him at the top of the championship table by a point. He’s salvaged this race expertly.
Lap 59: This would be Norris’s highest ever GP finish … but Hamilton goes wheel to wheel with him on Tamburello and veers outside him to take second at the start of lap 60 - and he takes second. Applause from the Mercedes team. “He’s too quick for me,” explains Norris.
Updated
Lap 58: Hamilton gets DRS on Norris, who covers his inside and keeps onto second place but whether he can do that for another six laps is doubtful. Hamilton has the bit between his teeth. Gasly goes wide at Rivazza and hits gravel but gets away with it and stays eighth.
Lap 56: Verstappen’s lead stretches to 18secs - absurd. Hamilton is now pursuing Norris, who we know is feeling “vibrations” (presumably not good ones).
Lap 54: Ten laps to go and Hamilton with DRS hunts down Leclarc, steaming around the outside into third. And only a second behind second (ie Norris). Ocon and Alonso are stuck with DRS behind Raikkonen in ninth.
Lap 52: This is set to be an absolute rout for Verstappen, who now leads by 15secs. Hamilton closes on Leclerc, who covers the inside leaving a frustrated Hamilton slotting back in in fourth.
Lap 51: “I’m getting vibrations, I don’t know where from,” yelps Norris. Can he cling on to second?
Lap 49: Hamilton attacks Sainz, who holds him off. But he goes again a minute or so later, and this time gets there, to claim fourth place. Second suddenly looks more than doable for him. “Happy with that Lewis, let’s get after it mate,” he’s told.
Lap 47: Perez, back in 13th, is in the hunts for points – Vettel, Alonso and Ocon are all in his sights. And with Verstappen now leading by 10secs, the battle for second looks the one to watch: Leclerc hunting down Norris for second with Sainz and Hamilton looming behind. Three seconds separating the four.
Updated
Lap 44: Verstappen is way ahead, 6.9secs ahead of Norris – who is on soft tyres and only 6secs ahead of Hamilton in fifth. Can he get there…?
Lap 42: Hamilton picks off Ricciardo for fifth and sets a new fastest lap. Giovinazzi is back on track but will do well to get a point now.
Updated
Lap 40: Verstappen reclaims fastest lap. Giovinazzi pits with a brake problem.
Lap 38: Hamilton quickly outdoes Verstappen for fastest lap. A wonderful afternoon for Sainz as it stands, who has clawed his way into fourth from P11
Lap 37: Verstappen sets a new fastest lap last time, no DRS at the moment. And now Perez, in fourth, has hit the gravel! He rejoins in 15th, behind Schumacher. No damage. Leclerc in third, Sainz fourth, Ricciardo fifth, and Hamilton has zoomed past Stroll into sixth.
Updated
Lap 36: Verstappen pulls 1.5sec clear of Norris. Hamilton, back in eighth, looks to reel in Stroll but an unremarkable restart leaves him a second behind.
Lap 35: And we’re back underway – after Verstappen almost spun himself out of the race before it restarted! – and Norris scoots past Leclerc for second place at turn one. Tsunoda spins off but just about salvages it and regains control.
Updated
How they stand
1 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull
2 Charles LECLERC Ferrari
3 Lando NORRIS McLaren
4 Sergio PEREZ Red Bull Racing
5 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari
6 Daniel RICCIARDO McLaren
7 Lance STROLL Aston Martin
8 Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN Alfa Romeo Racing
9 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes
10 Yuki TSUNODA AlphaTauri
11 Antonio GIOVINAZZI Alfa Romeo Racing
12 Fernando ALONSO Alpine
13 Esteban OCON Alpine
14 Pierre GASLY AlphaTauri
15 Sebastian VETTEL Aston Martin
16 Mick SCHUMACHER Haas
17 Nikita MAZEPIN Haas
18 Valtteri BOTTAS Mercedes--
19 George RUSSELL Williams--
20 Nicholas LATIFI Williams--
And it will be a rolling restart
Damon Hill gives his verdict on the Bottas-Russell crash: “Valtteri did move a little bit but the problem for George was he moved onto a damp bit [of grass], he was flat out, it broke traction and it took him into Valtteri’s car. These things happen when it’s slippery and wet like that.”
Updated
Seven minutes before the race resumes - with lapped cars allowed to ‘unlap’ themselves from a standing start.
Hamilton’s moment of misery:
Chaos! 😮
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) April 18, 2021
Lewis Hamilton slides onto the gravel and is into the wall! 💥
George Russell and Valtteri Bottas have had a huge accident, both out and ok 👍
📺 Live on Sky Sports F1
📱 Live on the App and Sky Go
💻 Live Blog: https://t.co/CkqLNBhbI5#SkyF1 | #F1 | #ImolaGP 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/sMoWDXKz0A
Not sure if Russell’s four-letter fury at Bottas is justified. He tried to overtake the Finn, who defended on the inside, before losing control when he went outside.
Ride onboard with George Russell as he and Valtteri Bottas collide in a scary high speed accident 💥
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) April 18, 2021
Racing incident? 💬⬇️#SkyF1 | #F1 | #ImolaGP 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/Af3Pn2Txkr
What a few minutes. Disaster for Hamilton, who was stuck in the gravel pit. After some back back and forth and forth, he escaped and is down in 9th. A flawless Verstappen leads Leclerc and Norris, Perez fourth and Sainz fifth. Now the race is suspended while debris are cleared from the track.
Updated
Lap 31: Big crash: Bottas and Russell. Debris everywhere but they are both OK. Russell is fuming at Bottas, who he was trying to overtake when they collided. “WHAT THE EFF WAS HE DOING? HONESTLY?” he bellows into his radio. Red flag.
Lap 31: Hamilton into the gravel! He slip into the gravel trap trying to overtake Verstappen. A huge mistake - he’s crunched his front wing against the wall. He reverses out, lorry-driver style, and re-enters the race in sixth. That’s his chances of winning gone!
Lap 30: Perez also pits, serves his penalty and changes his steering wheel. Hamilton won’t be happy with that sluggish pit stop.
Lap 29: But the Mercedes pit stop is 2 seconds slower than Red Bull’s! And Verstappen holds the lead, 2.5secs ahead of Hamilton. A game of inches.
Lap 28: Verstappen heads into the pits for some dry weather tyres and Hamilton responds with a fastest first sector of the race, then heads into the pits 28.5secs ahead of Verstappen. Game on.
Updated
Lap 27: Sainz races past Riccardo on the outside into sixth. Tsunoda is next to pit for new tyres – but no one else so far…
Lap 25: An obdurate Hamilton has closed the gap at the front to 2.5secs.
Updated
Lap 24: A frustrated Vettel serves his penalty, rejoining the track 3 seconds off in the first sector.
Lap 22: Vettel comes out on a set of slick tyres, the first driver to do so. But he’ll also have to deal with a 10-second stop and go penalty! His wheels weren’t fitted at the five-minute signal before the race.
Lap 21: George Russell, who has never got a point for Williams, is now 10th. Hamilton and Verstappen have pulled away into a class of their own and have just lapped Fernando Alonso in 16th.
Lap 19: Norris is told that his team “don’t want to be the first car onto dries”. He is five seconds ahead of Ricciardo and closing in on Perez.
Lap 17: “I have a lot more pace that I cannot use at the moment,” moans Norris, who is stuck behind teammate Ricciardo. The latter is promptly told to get out of the way.
Updated
“I can’t tell if this weather favours Max or Lewis,” writes Edwin Innih Imoesi. “This is intense. Bad luck for Sergio.”
Lap 15: Mick Schumacher is now 18th, with a replacement wing. Gasly pits to get some intermediates fitted.
Lap 14: Gasly’s full wets are proving horribly costly. He is 14th having started fifth.
Updated
Lap 13: Perez, currently fourth, has been given a stop-and-go penalty of 10 seconds for overtaking two cars under the safety car. That will cost him dear – he will have to stop in the pits for the full 10 seconds.
Updated
Lap 11: More squabbling between the trio in midfield as Norris and Sainz both inch past Gasly. And more rain arrives.
Lap 10: The leader clocks up his fastest lap. Perez is having less fun. “The steering wheel is moving by itself,” he complains to his team. Not ideal.
Lap 9: Verstappen is a full five seconds clear of Hamilton.
Lap 8: Sainz is flying and has overtaken Stroll and Gasly. In comes Norris, and he, Gasly and Stroll go three wide with Norris soaring past both. Remarkable driving from Norris.
Lap 7: The racing gets back underway and Hamilton and Verstappen go toe to toe again, this time Hamilton resists going for the kill.
Updated
Lap 5: Perez skids though the gravel under safety car – these conditions have thrown a cat among the pigeons.
Lap 4: Schumacher has crashed behind the safety car, trying to get temperature into his tyres, and hit the wall on the exit to the pit lane! There’s damage to the nose of his car but his race isn’t over yet… But he can’t pit because the lane is closed – so he’ll have to go round again before getting any repairs.
Updated
Lap 3: Latifi was at fault in his collision with Mazepin, who he drove onto the grass. Mercedes tell Hamilton:“Looks like we have damage to the front end wing.”
Updated
Lap 2: Tsunoda, who started last, is not mucking around and has already made his way up to 15th.
Lap 1: Ricciardo steams ahead of Gasly and Stroll into fifth while Latifi has hit Mazepin and spun into the wall, pretty hard. He’s okay though. And Leclerc has stolen ahead of Perez into third.
Updated
Lap 1: And we’re off. Verstappen gets away brilliantly, side by side with Hamilton into the first corner. Hamilton bounces over the curbs but holds on to second with Perez in close attendance. “I’ve got damage,” he says in his radio.
Updated
The gang rev up, and then head off for the formation lap, water spraying everywhere. Leclerc spins off! But gets going again and nips back past Gasly in to fourth
How they start:
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
2. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
5. Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)
6. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)
7. Lando Norris (McLaren)
8. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
9. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
11. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
12. George Russell (Williams)
13. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)
14. Nicholas Latifi (Williams)
15. Fernando Alonso (Alpine)
16. Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo)
17. Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo)
18. Mick Schumacher (Haas)
19. Nikita Mazepin (Haas)
20. Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)
Updated
Gasly, Ocon, Schmuacher and Mazepin are going to start with full wet tyres. And there will be no safety car start. Almost time now…
“It is tricky,” says Lando Norris, channelling his inner Joseph Simmons. “It is full wet at turn two but dry at the back. It will be a tricky start. It makes it more exiting. It’ll be a lot of fun as long as I keep it on the road.”
The cars of both Stroll and Vettel are undergoing some panicked last-minute work from the Aston Martin technicians – as is Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes.
And Fernando Alonso has driven into a wall. fine work all round.
Alonso in the wall!
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 18, 2021
The 2005 winner at this circuit slides off at Tosa and crunches the front wing 😱 He makes it back in the pits for repairs#ImolaGP 🇮🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/RnLmYp40vW
It’s all happening, and the race is still 20 minutes away. Lance Stroll is reporting issues with his brakes – it looks like they might have caught fire – while Bottas has a tyre puncture.
Water water everywhere:
And in more immediate news: it’s chucking it down in Imola! The cars are currently ploughing through puddles as they go through their reconnaissance laps.
Valtteri Bottas is blaming his disappointing display yesterday on Technical Difficulties. “First run, I went into turn two and had a really sudden snap from the rear end, and then it really continued through sector one, and I lost a lot of time,” he said. “Actually the same thing [happened] in run two; it was never there. I couldn’t trust the rear end of the car, and it was something that I didn’t feel in the whole qualifying before that.”
Hot off the press: F1 announced this morning that there will be a new grand prix in the calendar as of next year – in Miami, the city that keeps the roof blazin’. Here’s our full report:
Preamble
Lewis Hamilton produced a performance to surprise even himself yesterday, completing one of his best laps ever – steaming around the Imola track in 1min 14.411sec – to claim pole position for ahead of the Red Bulls of Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen. for the last few years Hamilton has had little competition for supremacy – but now he has exactly that, and is responding how the best sportspeople do: by upping his game accordingly.
The scene is set, then, for today’s race amid the resplendent scenery of northern Italy, on a track whose cruelty was laid bare yesterday by Lando Norris: his majestic final lap, which would have taken him second, took him outside the track limits by a matter of inches and thus didn’t count.
Valtteri Bottas’s did – although it was only enough to put him in eighth, which gives Red Bull a rare tactical advantage over Mercedes, with two drivers at the front in Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen. “It is going to take us as a team performing as close to perfection as possible,” reckons Hamilton. A high bar. Let’s see if they can clear it.
