The Mercedes team-mates’ Austrian collision came less than two months after they took each other out on the opening lap of the Spanish GP when fighting for the lead.
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But after they banged wheels in America past year – an incident which provoked Rosberg to throw a cap at Hamilton – Sunday’s collision marked the fourth time the Mercedes cars have been involved in an on-track altercation in just 13 grands prix.
While the team’s non-executive chairman Niki Lauda found fault with Rosberg, telling Reuters that “Lewis did nothing wrong”, team boss Toto Wolff made clear he was angry with both his drivers.
“Firstly for myself because that would take the joy of racing out, and secondly for the fans because that will rob them of what they pay so much money for”. “I’m just very, very disappointed with losing the win because I had it in the bag, I would love to have won here, and to lose it in such a way on the last lap is unbelievably hard”. For sure as a team boss and for the team, the team want to finish first and second and that’s our goal, that’s my goal and obviously I want to be at the front of that 1-2.
“While they are in the situation that they are in, with the competitiveness they have, they are obviously going to have….these issues are not going to be isolated to this race”. Every engineer and mechanic has been through Formula Ford, Formula Renault, all the different categories and seen the good and the bad and know these things can happen.
“It’s awful. It’s really the worst thing that can happen”.
“We’re driving at over 200mph”.
“I’m only human and there are days where it feels great, and days where you think s***, I’m never going to get up that mountain, but that’s when you dig deepest and somehow get up there”.
Rosberg was in fact fortunate the collision was on the final lap and not any sooner with the championship leader, who is now only 11 points ahead of Hamilton, only being passed by Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen before the chequered flag. Hamilton said: “That’s not my problem, It’s their problem”. He led early but dropped back to fourth after a messy pit stop that included a slow change of his rear tire.
“I’m fighting for a world championship so I’m going to keep fighting, and hopefully through these experiences there’ll will be no more collisions”. Three cars could have come on the inside of me there so. “I just don’t want any contact”.
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The Brackley team have allowed Hamilton and Rosberg to race freely over the past three seasons but Wolff says they may now have to intervene if the team-mates and title rivals can not battle cleanly.
