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British F1 press put blame on Verstappen as Hamilton thanks his lucky stars

British F1 press put blame on Verstappen as Hamilton thanks his "lucky stars"

13-09-2021 07:38
5

The Italian Grand Prix had it all. On any given day, the McLaren one-two finish would've covered the back pages in Britain. But such is the nature of Formula 1 in 2021, we don't see that. Instead, it's a big of the two World Championship contenders cars stacked on top of each other in the gravel. Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen crashed together and took each other out of the race. Here's how the British press reacted to the Italian Grand Prix. 

BBC Sport

BBC Sport points straight towards the impressive job carried out by the halo. "Red Bull's Verstappen flipped up beside Hamilton as the pair battled for position, the rear of Verstappen's car landing on Hamilton's Mercedes, the halo head protection device possibly saving the seven-time champion from injury. Both retired, beached in the gravel, meaning Verstappen remains five points ahead of Hamilton in the title race. However, the Dutchman was handed a three-place grid penalty by stewards after the race, to be taken at the Russian Grand Prix in two weeks' time."

The Telegraph 

The Telegraph also speaks about how lucky Hamilton felt to be uninjured in the crash. "Less than two months after their high-speed coming together at Silverstone, which put Verstappen in hospital but thankfully did not result in serious injury to the Dutchman, it was Hamilton who was thanking his lucky stars. With Hamilton and Verstappen out of the running, and the safety car making way with 22 laps remaining, McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris were able to sweep to an historic one-two - the Woking team’s first Grand Prix victory in nearly nine years."

The Guardian 

Looking at the coming together, the Guardian predicts that neither Hamilton or Verstappen will give an inch during the rest of the season. "Formula One has the championship fight it has long craved but at the Italian Grand Prix Lewis Hamilton’s and Max Verstappen’s rivalry became physical and worse still, potentially fatal. The plaudits belonged to McLaren and a remarkable one-two for Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris at Monza but the drama that has fuelled this fascinating season was centred once again on the two title protagonists, now focused on a fight so intense that neither seems willing to yield so much as an inch."

The Daily Mirror

The Daily Mirror leads with the incredible story McLaren produced. "Daniel Ricciardo emerged victorious at a dramatic Italian Grand Prix which saw Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen crash out. Ricciardo started the race in second position but overtook Verstappen on the first turn and his victory at Monza was rarely in doubt."

The Sun

In their liveblog, The Sun Newspaper points the blame straight at Max Verstappen. "Huge drama as the two championship leaders come together. Hamilton and Verstappen are BOTH out of this race. Amazing scenes. Hamilton was coming out of the pits and into the first chicane. He was in the lead. Verstappen should have backed out but Max being Max, refused to give an inch. He hit the sausage kerb and is sent flying into Hamilton's Mercedes. Taking them both out of the GP. TV replays show that Hamilton could have been saved by the Halo."

Daily Mail 

"Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen crashed out of the Italian Grand Prix - with the halo appearing to save Britain's seven-time world champion from serious injury. Daniel Ricciardo took advantage of the extraordinary accident to claim McLaren's first victory since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix. The Australian driver led home a one-two finish for the British team with Lando Norris taking a career-best second."