BAKU, June 26: Sebastian Vettel was penalised for dangerous driving after deliberately crashing into title rival Lewis Hamilton in a wild and chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix won by Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo on Sunday. Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas snatched the second place from 18-year-old Williams driver Lance Stroll in the final straight, as Vettel finished fourth ahead of Hamilton to extend his championship lead to 14 points. Despite Ricciardo’s win, the race will be remembered for the angry confrontation between former world champions Vettel and Hamilton.
Ferrari star Vettel was handed a 10-seconds stop-go penalty during the race for “dangerous driving” after he deliberately drove into Hamilton’s Mercedes while both were following the safety car. Vettel claimed Hamilton had braked in front of him and he responded by driving into the back of his rival before bumping the Briton from the side. “Nothing happened, did it?” Vettel said to Sky Sports. “He brake-checked me as well, so what do you expect? I’m sure he didn’t do it on purpose but for sure it was not the right move. “I got damage, he risked damage,” added the German. “After the incident, we were side by side, I raised my hand and showed him that I wasn’t happy with that.” Vettel reacted incredulously when he learned of the 10-second penalty on lap 32, while Hamilton, whose hopes of victory were later ended when he had to pit due to a loose head rest, complained over his radio that the sanction was insufficient. “I don’t really care about (what happened),” Hamilton responded. “It’s done and dusted and we move on. “I think it’s just not driver conduct. It’s dangerous driving and to get a 10-second penalty for that... “I don’t need to say anything else.”
Making the most of a series of extraordinary incidents and interventions in an action-packed race, which included three safety car interventions and a redflagged stoppage, Ricciardo, who started 10th, roared home 3.904 seconds ahead of the rest to deliver his first win of the season. Esteban Ocon of Force India was sixth ahead of Kevin Magnussen of Haas, Carlos Sainz of Toro Rosso, who also survived a first-lap collision, two-time champion Fernando Alonso, who scored McLaren’s first points of the year in ninth, and Pascal Wehrlein of Sauber. – Agencies
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