Alex Albon thinks Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen were “both aggressive” in the collision between the pair during last weekend’s Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix.
Albon, running in 14th at the time, had an up-close viewpoint on the incident as he was lapped on the start-finish straight as Hamilton and Verstappen contested third.
Verstappen made a late lunge up the inside of Hamilton into Turn 1, locking up his front tyres and missing the corner. As Hamilton turned in, his front right tyre made contact with the Dutchman’s rear left, sending the Red Bull into the air and off the track.
Verstappen claimed Hamilton’s move under braking had prompted his lock-up and ultimately the accident, while Hamilton had expressed his surprise at the stewards’ ruling he could have done more to avoid the contact.
“I knew they were close to each other, but I didn’t realise they’d be that close to each other, and didn’t realise it would be overtaking close,” Albon said.
Asked what he was thinking on the run into Turn 1, Albon stated: “Don’t be the creator of something that happens straight away!’
“And as soon as it happened it was ‘OK, I hope I wasn’t to blame for that one.”
Regarding the incident itself, Albon agreed with the stewards’ assessment that both drivers contributed to the collision.
“Max being aggressive on his move and then, at the same time, I do think there was an element of squeezing,” he explained.
“But it was all pretty close. I think the call in the end was the right one from the stewards. I think it was a racing incident. I mean, when they’re together, when is it not?”
In their final ruling, the stewards confirmed they did not consider Hamilton’s actions to be “a typical case of ‘changing direction under braking'”, but added that “the driver of Car 44 could have done more to avoid the collision,” much to Hamilton’s exasperation.
The stewards ultimately determined that “no driver was predominantly to blame,” taking no further action.
While Verstappen avoided sanctions either in Hungary or for the weekend in Spa, the championship leader will take a grid penalty on Sunday for a new engine, a consequence of the mechanical failure sustained in Canada earlier in the season.
It means he’s guaranteed to start the race from outside the top 10. However, Verstappen is no stranger to fighting through the field at Spa, having won the race from 14th on the grid in 2022, and from sixth last year.
