Sebastian Vettel has laid the blame for his retirement from the Russian Grand Prix squarely on Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat after the pair came to blows for a second time in as many races.
A fortnight ago the pair had a heated exchange before the podium with Vettel comparing Kvyat's first corner move to a "torpedo". They didn't make contact, but Vettel and team-mate Kimi Raikkonen did as a result.
In Russia, Kvyat bumped Vettel's rear at Turn 2 before further contact at Turn 3 caused Vettel to spin off into the barriers, ending his race.
The German expressed his emotions on team radio: "I'm out. Crash. Somebody hit me in the f**king rear in Turn 2, then someone hit me in the f**king rear again in Turn 3," he said, adding: "Honestly. What the f**k are we doing here?"
Speaking during the race and once he had reveiwed footage of the incident, Vettel insisted he was blameless.
"It was fairly clear – I just saw the footage. I got a bit hit to spin in Turn 2 and I got a huge hit which turned me around at Turn 3, and I couldn't avoid hitting the barriers.
"In the end these things happen but it is harsh. In the end the race is long. You can make progress in the first lap but you can also end your race, which for me was the case there.
"It was not my fault. There was nothing I could do different."
When asked if he held a grudge against Kvyat now, he replied: "I don't dislike him [Kvyat], I think he made a mistake two weeks ago, he did a mistake today. It is fairly obvious but it doesn't help me out because I am not in the race."
Discussion about this post