Hamilton plans to respond to Vettel on track

Lewis Hamilton don't plan to come back with Sebastian Vettel on the incident that occurred between the two title rivals last Sunday at the Azerbaijan GP in Baku. The pilot Ferrari, who finished 4th ahead of the pilot Mercedes, was penalized for hitting the W08 of the Briton who was leading the race after hitting the car for the first time. car who had suddenly braked when exiting a corner under safety car regime (see video).

Si Sebastian Vettel believes Lewis Hamilton should also have been penalized, the Ferrari driver sought to calm things down after the finish.

“I have no problem with him. I respect him a lot as a driver, commented Sebastian Vettel. I don't think his maneuver (sudden braking) was voluntary because he also risked damaging his car and his race would have been over. It's not yet the right time to discuss it, but I will only do it with him in order to turn the page. »

Sebastian Vettel's proposal does not seem to interest Lewis Hamilton, who remains on his reserve after the Ferrari driver's maneuver. The Mercedes driver was very upset just after the finish.

“He doesn’t even have my number, Lewis Hamilton later added. I just want to respond on the track, that's the most important thing for me. I heard what he said after the race. I remain certain that his maneuver was not appropriate, but the fact of the weekend for me was that I lost the race because of the cockpit protection. I now want to be on the attack and win the next 12 races. »

Daniel Ricciardo, the winner of the Azerbaijan GP who took advantage of the disappointments of the two Championship leaders, defended Lewis Hamilton.

“Seb sometimes reacts before thinking,” admitted Daniel Ricciardo on the BBC. He probably drives with passion and the rage to win. I really respect Seb for his courage and his love of discipline, but he sometimes goes beyond the limits. We see that he sometimes goes crazy in his radio. Whether Lewis braked or not, he has every right to dictate the pace because he is the leader and it was too early to restart. Seb was probably too excited. »

Sebastian Vettel now has a 14-point lead over Lewis Hamilton before the Austrian GP on July 9.