Sebastian Vettel says it was only a small mistake which caused his race-ending crash out of the German Grand Prix.
The Ferrari driver slid into the barriers at the Motodrom hairpin on the 52nd lap of the race during a rain shower. The furious driver was seen pummelling his steering wheel with his hands afterwards.
“Well I was in the barrier and realised that I don’t get out from there,” he told media afterwards. I don’t think it was a huge mistake,” he said. “It was a huge impact on the race because we retired there.
“[But] it’s not like tonight I will have difficulties to fall asleep because of what I have done wrong. It’s disappointing because up to that everything was sweet. But as I said we didn’t need the rain.”
Vettel was running on older tyres than several of his rivals, including eventual winner Lewis Hamilton, when he crashed out. “They weren’t fresh but I guess it was slippery for everyone,” he said.
He apologised to his team for the crash and said the car’s performance showed they should feel confident about their chances in the title fight.
“We have a strong car so I think we can be as confident or more than anybody else. It was a very positive weekend. “It was just one of those moments, my mistake. Apologies to the team, they did everything right. I had it in my hands, a small mistake, big disappointment.”
The other Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen said, the he just wanted clarification from the Ferrari pit wall as to whether they wanted him to let Sebastian Vettel in Germany.
Racing 1-2 at the Hockenheimring with Raikkonen ahead of Vettel after his early pit stop put him ahead, Vettel complained that being stuck behind his team-mate was ruining his race.
“This is just silly… I’m losing time, destroying my tyres,” he said. Ferrari came on the radio and relaid the message to Raikkonen. After some querying, he ended with: “If you want me to let him go, just tell me…” Jock Clear replied: “Affirm, Kimi, affirm.”
Raikkonen led Vettel through but it came to naught as the German crashed while leading the race as he got caught out in the rain.
Asked about the use of team orders and especially he request for clarity, he explained: “We have certain rules but it wasn’t clear,” he explained.
“I had the speed and it was at a moment in the race that I needed to two-stop and it was what happened. I don’t know that it changed a lot in the end with what happened.
“It was a tricky race with the rain, pretty slippery in some places. “I had a moment with one of the lappers, the Sauber, and then Valtteri [Bottas] got passed me. “Happy to finish, a bit disappointed.
