'Too dramatising': Schumacher blasts Lewis Hamilton over F1 crash
Former F1 race-winner Ralf Schumacher has accused reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton of 'dramatising' the aftermath of his crash with Max Verstappen at the Italian GP.
Hamilton and many others in the F1 world felt the Mercedes champion was saved by the halo device during the race at Monza, after he and Verstappen collided.
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The Dutchman was sent flying across the top of Hamilton's car, with Verstappen's rear-left wheel coming into contact with Hamilton's helmet.
Verstappen was ultimately handed a three-place grid penalty for his role in the incident, which saw both toe F1 title contenders retire from the race, which was won by McLaren's Daniel Ricciardo.
In the hours after the race, Hamilton began to complain of soreness and sought treatment from a specialist, suggesting the adrenaline from being behind the wheel had worn off and that the full weight of the accident was taking hold.
However, 24 hours later Hamilton flew from Italy to New York, where he attended the Met Gala.
F1 veteran Schumacher, brother of seven-time champion Michael, said Hamilton's ability to travel so soon after the crash meant there likely wasn't too much to complain about.
“I think Lewis was too dramatising of it, considering that he flew to New York the next day to attend an event," he said in an interview with Sport1.
The crash is the latest chapter in an increasingly acrimonious championship battle between Red Bull and Mercedes, which reached an earlier flashpoint after Verstappen came of second-best in a high speed collision during the British GP.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko also suggested Mercedes were making the incident out to be worse than it was.
"It was a normal racing accident. All the stories around it were pulled up by the hair by Mercedes," he said.
"The medical car saw that and drove on. And then a show is put on that poor Hamilton is suddenly injured."
FIA to probe Hamilton-Verstappen collision
Formula One's governing body will investigate the crash between title contenders Verstappen and Lewis because it was 'unusual', according to the race's Australian director Michael Masi.
Masi said that although the collision was relatively low-speed, the FIA's safety experts would still take a look.
The crash had Verstappen's Red Bull lift up off a kerb and land on Hamilton's Mercedes with the inside of a rear wheel hitting the seven-times world champion's helmet through the protective halo.
"Incidents that are different, so it's not necessarily high G impacts or anything like that, but are unusual, we do look at," said Masi.
"Our safety department does look at them in detail, investigate and see what we can learn and what we can improve for the future. That's how we have a whole lot of the safety features that we have today, and will continue to evolve into the future.
"We are already collecting all of the data, so we have all of the information and that will all go to our safety department together with any photographs and anything else we have along the way."
The Monza stewards blamed championship leader Verstappen and handed the Dutch 23-year-old a three place grid drop for the next race in Russia.
Ross Brawn, F1 boss, said: "It's clear both drivers could have avoided it. It's another consequence of two guys going head to head and not wanting to give an inch.
"It's a shame they ended up in the gravel because it could have shaped up to be a great race - and we were deprived of that.
"I wouldn't say it has changed the dynamic - you've got two cockerels in the farmyard at the moment and we are seeing the consequence of it - and I don't think either will back off at any moment for the rest of the year. But I hope the championship is won on the track, not in the barriers or the stewards room."
With AAP
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