"Wound up" Hamilton drove like an "amateur" in Verstappen crash - Horner

Hamilton and Verstappen moments before the collision — Photo: © LAT Images

British Grand Prix

"Wound up" Hamilton drove like an "amateur" in Verstappen crash - Horner

Red Bull boss was scathing of Mercedes driver

Ian Parkes

Monday 19 July 2021 08:00

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Red Bull team principal Christian Horner believes Lewis Hamilton was "wound up" after losing F1's maiden sprint race and ended up driving like 'an amateur' in the build-up to the first-lap clash with Max Verstappen in the British Grand Prix.

Horner was left fuming with Hamilton in the wake of an incident that has lit the blue touchpaper to an explosive campaign over the remaining 13 races as the title rivals give no quarter in their bid for the championship.

Horner initially described Hamilton as "desperate' and "dangerous" and is convinced that what unfolded during the sprint led to that state of mind and Verstappen's 51g impact with a tyre barrier at Copse Corner and a subsequent trip to hospital.

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Following what he felt was a "strong" day for Verstappen on Saturday with the sprint win, Horner felt that "added to Lewis’ desperation".

"Having lost the sprint, he was pretty wound up and that’s why he made an ill-judged move," said Horner.

"He ran wide into the corner with too much speed. That move was never on.

"Lewis is a world champion with seven titles and that was an amateur’s mistake and a desperate mistake. We were just very lucky someone wasn’t seriously injured."

Hamilton actions "jeopardised" Verstappen safety

Despite being handed a 10-second penalty by the stewards, Hamilton went on to win his eighth British GP after hunting down Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in the closing laps.

Hamilton went on to pass Leclerc into Copse - the scene of the Verstappen crash -forcing the Monégasque to make a small mistake on the exit.

The victory sparked wild celebrations with the overwhelming majority of the 140,000 crowd, drawing scorn from Verstappen who claimed Hamilton was "disrespectful and unsportsmanlike" while he was in hospital.

"I don’t see how Lewis can take any satisfaction out of a win when you have put your fellow competitor and driver in hospital," seethed Horner. "It’s disappointing, it's extremely annoying.

"His actions have jeopardised another driver’s safety and for me, that’s unacceptable. He was lucky not to have had the same happen with Leclerc.

"If Leclerc hadn’t have run wide and taken the line he was entitled to, exactly the same incident would have prevailed."