Lewis Hamilton says he was “dumb” to imply that Scuderia Ferrari Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen might have deliberately collided with him at the start of the British Grand Prix. Hamilton had referred to “interesting tactics” immediately after the race, in which Raikkonen hit the back of his car and spun him round on the first lap.
On Instagram on Monday, Hamilton said: “Kimi said sorry and we move on. It was a racing incident and nothing more.”
Hamilton said that “sometimes we say dumb” things and “we learn from it”. The Mercedes driver added that said that his immediate post-race remarks were down to the exhaustion he felt after such a demanding race: “I lost nearly 3kg [in body fluids] trying to get back to the top for you and my team,” he said, addressing his 6.7 million followers on the social media platform – “I barely had any energy at the end to stand, let alone talk. If you can’t understand and appreciate that, then I fully understand. However, [it] was nothing to do with anger, [I was] literally just exhausted both mentally and physically. Thank you to everyone for the incredible support this weekend. We win and lose together. Onwards and upwards.” – he concluded.
After the race, Lewis Hamilton had pointed out that twice in three races a Ferrari driver had collided with a Mercedes on the first lap. Scuderia Ferrari German driver and current championship leader Sebastian Vettel hit Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas at the first corner of the French Grand Prix, forcing both to return to the pits to repair damage and fight from the back.
