A run-in accident prevented Daniel Ricciardo from scoring his first F1 points this year, but instead he was forced to abandon the Chinese Grand Prix. The field was preparing for the restart on the 27th lap, when several people piled up before the hairpin, as a result of which Lance Stroll collided with Daniel Ricciardo from behind.
With his inattention, the Canadian rider not only deprived both of them of the opportunity to score points, but also angered his Australian opponent, who could hardly contain himself after his elimination, after Stroll taunted him for their knocking.
“It’s very frustrating. Obviously, racing accidents happen, but something like this should never happen behind the safety car,” said the Racing Bulls (VCARB) driver. “It made my blood boil when I looked at the dashcam footage and saw that as soon as we started to brake, his helmet turned to the right and he was already looking at the apex of turn 14, not paying attention to me at all. By that time, he had bumped into me as well, when he looked back.”
“I don’t know what he’s doing or where his head is, but all he should do in this situation is worry about me, but it’s obvious he didn’t…”
“I was just starting to calm down when they told me what Lance thought about the incident. He thinks I’m an idiot and it’s my fault. This made my blood boil even more, because it is clearer than the sun what happened, moreover, behind the safety car. In such cases, you should do one thing: watch the car in front of you,” Motorsport.com quoted Ricciardo as saying. “I try my best not to say what I want to say, but this guy still sucks, and I still said it in a nice way. But if he thinks so…”
The race inspectors found Stroll guilty in the matter, for which he was awarded a 10-second time penalty during the race – although this had little significance as he finished in 15th place. In addition, his maneuver was “rewarded” with two penalty points, so the number of units he earned within 12 months increased to seven. Ricciardo didn’t escape the punishment either, he was only cited for another incident.
And what Stroll said after their accident, we reported here.
