“No danger” in Verstappen-Hamilton ‘racing incident’ - Alonso
The 2021 championship contenders were involved in a race-ending crash midway through last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza as they battled for position at the first chicane.
Verstappen’s Red Bull was launched over the top of Hamilton’s Mercedes, with his right rear wheel striking the roll hoop, Halo and the seven-time world champion’s helmet as both cars ended up beached in the gravel trap.
SEE ALSO: Dramatic new F1 footage shows Verstappen’s wheel hit Hamilton
But Alpine driver Alonso played down the latest collision between Verstappen and Hamilton as nothing more than a “racing incident”.
“I just looked at the incident and it seems an unfortunate position and corner and kerb,” said the two-time world champion. “The car jumps a little bit and they just touched tyre with tyre and the rubber makes one car fly.
“But it’s low-speed, they are at 30 or 40kph, there is no danger, there is no nothing. So I don’t think that today was a big thing. Silverstone, probably yes, but today it was just a racing incident.”
Alonso believes both drivers “did what they should do” and were unfortunate to have collided, citing earlier examples of similar accidents between Antonio Giovinazzi and Charles Leclerc, and Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez that had less dramatic consequences.
“I think Lewis tried to run wide in turn one to force maybe Max to cut the corner. Max doesn’t cut the corner, stay in the outside, but then there is no corner possible to make on the inside for turn two,” he explained.
“I think they both they did what they should do and unfortunately they touched each other.
“I saw the replay of this start as well, and Giovinazzi and Leclerc touched in the same way, Stroll and Perez they touched in the same way, turn one and two, but they didn’t touch wheel-to-wheel, rubber-to-rubber, tyre to tyre. So there is not the same outcome.
“But this is a very difficult manoeuvre in turn one, turn two and they’ve been unlucky that they touched tyre with tyre.”
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