DAMS driver Nicholas Latifi says a lost wing mirror cost him victory in the Formula 2 sprint race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
The Canadian driver stormed into a clear lead at the start of the race, having started from third place on the grid.
He appeared in control at the front of the field but with four laps remaining, he went off and into the gravel trap at the Turn 5 hairpin.
This promoted Nobuharu Matsushita to first place and also let through his DAMS team-mate Oliver Rowland, with Latifi finishing third.
Latifi, who is testing in F1 with Renault and Pirelli on Wednesday, has now explained that a lost wing mirror distracted him and that caused him to go off.
“A lap before I went off something quite big flew off and hit me in the helmet, I actually thought it was a bit of the front wing but everything felt OK, and it turned out to be the right mirror,” he explained.
“I only noticed it just before I was braking for Turn 5, and it just distracted me for a tenth of a second or something, delayed my reaction, and it’s quite a tricky corner to get right, especially in the races, and I missed my braking point.
“I’m just very disappointed: I know it was my race to win. There’s a lot of frustration but I can’t do anything about it.
“It’s done and I can’t take it back, but there are also positives I can take away from it: it was the first reverse grid I got into since the start of last year, it was the first race I could get out in front and lead, and I was managing it fine.
“It was my race but I got distracted, that’s all: when you’re cruising out the front there’s a lot to think about and I just made a mistake, as simple as that.”
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