09/12/2021 11:13 AM
Clarín.com
sports
Updated 9/12/2021 2:57 PM
The two main contenders for the title of the season in Formula 1,
Max Verstappen
(Red Bull) and
Lewis Hamilton
(Mercedes),
were left out of the Italian Grand Prix
after both collided with each other in the race that takes place at the circuit from Monza.
The controversy, which is already among the great historical discussions of the category, resulted
in a penalty for the Dutchman.
Although the resolution only left more fabric to cut ...
The drivers began to pit after the first twenty laps and with three of the four leaders (Verstappen,
Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo
) on medium tires that were already too worn.
Hamilton hoped
to profit
from starting the race on hard tires.
In fact, he was the leader after the forced arrests of his rivals and then, yes, the Mercedes faced his own stop.
The Englishman's passage through the pits
was not bad, although it could have been better
(it took him 4.2 seconds to change the wheels, something he could have done in just over half the time) and fate wanted him to hit the track
just as Verstappen was passing by.
As soon as he entered, Hamilton threw himself to the left, the part of the outside of the track in that final sector of the main straight.
Surely he saw Verstappen in the mirror and wanted to win the position to avoid being overtaken by the Dutchman.
And like someone who accelerates when he sees the yellow light of the traffic light, Max
did not want to lose the chance to overcome it and went hard.
pic.twitter.com/BtM5zeecfE
- VideosF1 (@ VideosF12) September 12, 2021
Thus, Verstappen
stepped on the pianitos and went against the Mercedes
, touching it on its side.
When the right rear wheel of his car touched the left rear of his rival's car, his Red Bull rose and passed over Hamilton, fortunately protected by the unsightly but effective halo.
Both went directly to the leca,
unable to return to the track.
Verstappen quickly got out of the car and headed for the pits, without saying a word to Hamilton, who stayed in his car for a while longer, perhaps chewing on the fight.
Later it will be known what defines the commission and to whom responsibility is assigned, although it
seemed shared
in this case, perhaps with a little more from Verstappen, who demanded perhaps too much.
pic.twitter.com/2akK7foinp
- VideosF1 (@ VideosF12) September 12, 2021
It is impossible to be sure what would have happened if both of them had been on the track, but one thing was clear:
Hamilton came out the winner
of that round of pit stops, especially after Verstappen cost him a lot (it took more than 10 seconds).
And it would have been a spectacular heads-up fight between the two candidates, but the touch prevented it.
A clash, definitely, that has
already entered among the great controversies of history
and that does nothing more than add more flavor to a spectacular championship, which has them both separated by just five points, with Verstappen as the leader.
Of course, the protagonists spoke of the incident after the competition.
Hamilton was blunt and
blamed Verstappen
for what happened.
"I got out, I saw Daniel (Ricciardo) pass me, Max was coming and
I made sure to leave a car's distance on the outside for him
. I went into Turn 1, I was ahead, and I was ahead going into Turn 2. So All of a sudden,
he jumped on me
. Today he didn't want to give in. He knew what was going to happen when he entered Turn 2. He
knew he was going to go over the curbs. But even so, he did it,
"he told
Sky Sports
.
Verstappen and Hamilton, just after the crash.
Photo ANDREJ ISAKOVIC / AFP
"He was
in
exactly
the same position I was
in the first lap, but I gave in, that's the way the races are," Hamilton said in reference to his first collision, on the opening lap, when he had effectively managed to impose himself and snatch the race from him. position to Verstappen but then lifted, allowing the Dutchman to defend his position.
"We will talk to the stewards and see. But I don't know what else to say," concluded the Englishman, who said that his neck is a bit sore, but that it will be fine.
Shortly before 14:00 in Argentina,
the FIA
issued the resolution and
found Verstappen responsible for the accident
after
analyzing the film material and listening to the statements
of both drivers.
"It was determined that the driver of car 33 was
the main culprit
for the collision with the driver of car 44 in turn 2 - the text reads -. At 50 meters from turn 1, car 44 was
significantly ahead
of 33."
Next, the commissariat details what was stated by the drivers: "The driver of car 33 (Verstappen) claimed that the cause of the incident was that the driver of car 44 (Hamilton) opened the address after Turn 1
and 'pressed' it
to the apex of curve 2. The driver of car 44 claimed that the driver of car 33
tried to pass him too late
and should have left the curve, either backing up earlier or turning left behind the curb. "
Subsequently, they gave rise to their own analysis of the events: "The stewards observed in the closed-circuit images that the driver of car 44
was driving an evasion line, although his position caused car 33 to climb over the curb
. But also , the stewards observed that car 33
was not at all next to car 44 until well before the entry into Turn 1
".
The resolution of the FIA with the sanction of Max Verstappen.
Thereafter, the resolution comes: "In the opinion of the stewards, this maneuver was attempted
too late
for the driver of car 33 to have 'right to race space'. While car 44
could have turned further from the curb to avoid the incident, the marshals determined that their position was reasonable and, therefore, they consider that the driver of car 33 was the main culprit
of the incident. "
The resolution results in
a three-position penalty for Verstappen on the next starting grid
.
Ultimately, Ricciardo
was the great beneficiary
, he remained as the leader and headed to victory followed by his teammate Norris, who possibly should give up
the fight
for victory against the other McLaren man.
What will the next chapter of this huge rivalry hold?
Look also
Italian GP: after the crash and scandal between Verstappen and Hamilton, Ricciardo won and McLaren completed a historic 1-2
Formula 1 live: how to watch the Italian Grand Prix on TV and online