Lewis Hamilton reacts after first-corner collision with George Russell
Hamilton was sent into the gravel in Qatar with the right-rear of his Mercedes flying off in the accident
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Lewis Hamilton is out of the Qatar Grand Prix after a dramatic collision with Mercedes team-mate George Russell at the very first corner of Sunday’s race.
Hamilton, who started third, drove around the outside of his team-mate, one place higher on the grid, and pole-sitter Max Verstappen before making contact with Russell’s machine.
Hamilton was sent into the gravel with the right-rear of his Mercedes flying off in the accident.
Both Hamilton and Russell pointed the finger at one another, before the seven-time world champion took responsibility in his post-race interview.
“I just feel really sorry for the team, we had a chance today to get some good points,” he said.
“Heat of the moment, I didn’t understand what happened but I don’t think George had anywhere to go. I’m happy to take responsibility for it.
“It’s massively gutting to have a result like this. It’s very rare that this happens, I hope George is able to get back into the points.”
Hamilton wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, after the race, saying: “I’ve watched the replay and it was 100% my fault and I take full responsibility. Apologies to my team and to George.”
Russell yelled at the time: “Come on, what the hell,. That is two races in a row.”
Russell was sent spinning round in the incident before limping back to the pits for repairs.
But Hamilton’s race was over. “Yeah, I got taken out by team-mate,” said Hamilton, 38.
Russell was back on the radio. “Sorry guys, I wasn’t even looking,” he added amid a flurry of expletives. “I was focused ahead and he came from nowhere.
“F*** I am lost for words. Honestly. I have just seen the replays on the TV screen. I couldn’t do anything. Totally sandwiched. “F***, come on.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is absent from this race – his second in a row – as he recovers from knee surgery.
But the Austrian came on the intercom in a move to calm Russell, 25, down.
“George, let’s race now, and get the best out of it,” he said.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments