It was like travelling back in time during the Brazilian Grand Prix when fans were treated to a battle between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso.
Vettel lunged up the inside of Alonso at turn 11, but when the McLaren driver fought back around the outside of turn 12 he felt Vettel forced him off the track. Remember – “All the time you have to leave a space!”
Fernando isn’t at all happy about it and has a strong message for Vettel: “There was an asphalt run-off and I used it and nothing happened. But if there’s a wall there, I either drive into the wall or into him, which is what I will probably do next time. I’ll crash into him and he will lose more points than me.”
Oof, strong words! It’s probably not the best idea to admit you’re going to deliberately crash into a rival, but it’s not the first time Vettel has come under fire for his driving. An ambitious move in Malaysia saw him crash into Nico Rosberg at the first corner, and in Mexico he was penalised for moving under braking when Daniel Ricciardo was attempting to overtake, which Ferrari seem insistent on appealing for some reason.
Lo subo de nuevo para tenerlo en el resumen del GP.
El incidente entre Alonso y Vettel #F1 pic.twitter.com/BFV0xhhNtI
— MrAlexF1 (@MrAlexF1) November 13, 2016
Weather conditions in Brazil probably played a part in the incidents not being investigated by the stewards – Hulkenberg edged Ocon off the circuit at turn 3 in a similar situation – but Alonso clearly feels that Sebastian has some lessons to learn.
He added: “One day we’ll have to drive into him so he realises that the track belongs to everybody.” Wow.
Vettel and Alonso have had heated battles in the past, notably at Silverstone in 2014 where they spent most of their epic duel complaining loudly over team radio that the other driver was exceeding track limits.
Funnily enough later on in the race Vettel complained about Verstappen running him off the road. I know racing drivers believe they’re never wrong, but where on earth is Seb’s head at at the moment?
Honestly!