For much of Friday and Saturday, the chief talking points around the British Grand Prix centred around what exactly to call the new Saturday qualifying race – sorry, F1 Sprint – and whether credit for pole position should go to the winner of that event or the fastest driver in regular qualifying on Friday.
And then, of course, Max Verstappen and Sir Lewis Hamilton made contact while battling for the lead at Copse on the first lap of the race, pitching the Red Bull driver into a terrifying high-speed crash and sparking a fast-escalating war of words.
Here are the key talking points from a controversial Silverstone weekend.
Collision ramps up title battle tension
Verstappen and reigning champion Hamilton have been battling each other all season and, given that both are determined, uncompromising racers, it has always felt like it could lead to an on-track clash.
Having won the qualifying race – sorry, F1 Sprint – Verstappen started the race from pole, but Mercedes-AMG racer Hamilton pushed him hard for the first half of the opening lap. Verstappen managed to resist several of Hamilton’s charges, but the Brit got a run and had the inside line heading into the ultra-quick Copse corner.
The resulting clash pitched Verstappen off the track at high speed and into the barriers. He was taken to hospital but thankfully was unhurt. Hamilton, meanwhile, dropped behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and picked up damage to his car, which the team could fix during the following red-flag period. Hamilton was later given a 10sec time penalty, served during his pit stop, for the clash.
You’ve probably already got your own – possibly strong – views on the crash and, frankly, there’s already about as much amateur analysis on the footage online as there is of the Zapruder film. Certainly, you can make arguments both ways, so feel free to argue about it as much as you like.
Certainly, Hamilton tried a bold move at a corner where overtaking is extremely difficult. But you also can’t isolate what happened in that singular corner from Verstappen’s incredibly aggressive defence over the first half-lap of the race.
Join the debate
Add your comment
Well, here we are, it's Tuesday,and we're still bashing the keyboard about Sunday's GP, we'll never come to a common conclusion we all agree on, so, let's just move on, and agree to disagree.
If Helmut Markko feels guilty about sacking Albon from Red Bull race teams unceremoniously, then blaming Lewis for ruining his career because of one corner incident, is an entirely logical get out for him, especially after Sunday.
Lewis has effectively finished a few F1 drivers careers, including Alonso, Massa, Button, Rosberg, Vettel, Bottas and now he is taking Max to the max. It's great that he still has that commitment, ability and drive to be the best.
Sundays comeback drive was pure Hollywood and once again sets down markers for others to marvel at.
Jocolo how about you flesh your argument out beyond a childish insult? Debate is a bit more intelligent than insults normally, and it's how grown up mature people communicate. Beyond, means outside in this instance, just in case you have trouble grasping language. If you need help from an adult to formulate your reply I can wait.