Sebastian Vettel's spin during the Bahrain Grand Prix was the mistake of an "amateur" according to former Formula 1 driver Jolyon Palmer, who says the German's record of mistakes is "unacceptable" for a four-time World Champion.
Vettel spun as he was passed by Lewis Hamilton, despite the pair making no contact, and although Palmer recognises the conditions were difficult, he insists that's a poor excuse for what is now a worrying trend for the Ferrari driver.
"Vettel's spin in the race in Bahrain was amateur," Palmer wrote in his BBC Sport column.
"The move was done. Vettel then lit up the rear tyres, too heavy on the throttle on the exit and simply spun the car. He was clearly flustered by the Mercedes coming through and panicked.
"The spin was different to his three at the back end of last year because this one was on the exit of the corner, rather than on the entry or at the apex with a car squeezing him from the outside. But the reason for it seems to be the same – panic in the heat of battle."
Vettel has rejected claims of pressure forcing him into mistakes and took blame for the incident, but Palmer says there's no excuses for such performances from a four-time champion.
"Conditions were tough. High winds play havoc with the balance of an F1 car. They make them so difficult and unpredictable to drive because the cars rely on having the perfect airflow to make the downforce work.
"But this is a weak excuse for a spin of that simplicity. If a backmarker rookie had spun in the manner Vettel did, they would have been a laughing stock after the race. For a four-time world champion to do so should be unthinkable.
"Mistakes happen, but this is now four spins in Vettel's past 10 races going back to Monza last year. That's clearly an unacceptable trend for a championship challenger."
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