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Apologetic Red Bull duo reprimanded for Baku crash

Red Bull duo Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were reprimanded by the stewards for their collision in a chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Red Bull duo Daniel Ricciardo (right) and Max Verstappen

Baku, April 30: Red Bull duo Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were reprimanded by the stewards for their collision in a chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Ricciardo ploughed into the back of Verstappen as the team-mates battled it out for fourth spot in Baku, bringing a premature end to their race with 11 laps remaining.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said the pair are in the doghouse after they "screwed up" in an action-packed race which was won by Lewis Hamilton, his Mercedes colleague Valtteri Bottas suffering a late puncture while leading.

Ricciardo, winner of the Chinese Grand Prix two weeks ago, and Verstappen were given a rebuke by the stewards and both apologised for a costly smash, which Horner said they were both to blame for.

Australian Ricciardo said: "For sure it was a chaotic race and I guess we caused most of that. I have watched a few replays and the only thing we can both say is sorry to the team. This is the last thing we wanted.

"We want to be able to race and I'm thankful that the team let us race. We tried to keep it clean and give each other room but we were racing hard and in the end it cost us.

"I'm not going to talk about the incident but this was the worst-case scenario and everyone is pretty heartbroken. I will personally apologise to the team and once again I'm just sorry we are all in this situation when everyone has worked so hard to give us such a good car."

Verstappen has endured a nightmare start to the season and the Dutchman said he and Ricciardo will learn from what was a day to forget.

"Today was just really disappointing for the team and we lost many points unnecessarily. I don't think we need to speak about fault because at the end of the day we are racing for a team and representing a lot of people, so when this happens it is not good for both of us," the 20-year-old said.

"The tow was very strong and our speed was very similar, so we were then always very close to each other. Before the accident it was hard racing but fair I think and we gave each other space, we had a little brush with the wheels but I think in racing that can happen, but what happened afterwards is not good.

"We will learn from this and have to make sure it doesn't happen again. I don't think not letting us race anymore is the way forward but of course we will talk this over as a team and learn from it.

"We are always very fair to each other and have spoken immediately about this. For now, I'm just sorry and want to apologise to the people we represent here and at the factory as well."

Source: OPTA

Story first published: Monday, April 30, 2018, 9:52 [IST]
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