Lewis Hamilton admitted he 'misjudged' the gap when trying to overtake Oscar Piastri during the Italian GP; the Mercedes driver finished sixth despite receiving a five-second penalty for the incident; McLaren's Piastri required a new front wing and finished outside the points
Sunday 3 September 2023 18:08, UK
Lewis Hamilton has taken the blame for his collision with Oscar Piastri during the Italian Grand Prix and has since apologised to the McLaren rookie.
Having been the only driver starting in the top 10 to begin the race on hard tyres, Hamilton had an advantage in the second stint as he ran on the better-performing medium compound.
After rapidly closing on the then eighth-placed Piastri, Hamilton looked to be making a simple move into the second chicane on lap 41, when the Mercedes drifted to the right and into the McLaren, causing a collision.
The resulting damage left Piastri needing to pit for a new front wing and relegated him to outside of the points, while Hamilton went on to overtake Alex Albon and Lando Norris as he finished sixth despite being given a five-second time penalty for the incident.
"I enjoyed the battle I had at the end," Hamilton said.
"It was a bit unfortunate and I misjudged the gap I had with Piastri right at the end.
"It was totally my fault and I went and apologised to him straight afterwards and we move on."
Despite a frustrating afternoon, Piastri admitted that he couldn't ask for much more from Hamilton than the apology that came swiftly after the race.
"The incident with Lewis, he probably just creeped over a bit more than he thought," said Piastri.
"The stewards gave out their verdict and he has apologised so there is nothing more I can ask for or do at that point."
Hamilton's recovery helped him close to within six points of third-placed Fernando Alonso in the drivers' standings, with the Brit and Spaniard in a tight contest to be highest finisher behind the dominant Red Bulls.
Hamilton added: "I think every position we are getting in these races is seeming to be incredibly hard and fought for."
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff believes the penalty given to his driver was justified but thinks Hamilton's reaction should be commended for its "sportsmanship".
Indeed, he thinks it is in direct contrast to how most other drivers on the grid react when being handed a penalty.
"I think both penalties you can justify so we have to look at that and how we can prevent it in the future," said Wolff.
"He is very sportsmanlike with these things and he is the only one I see out there admitting that it was wrong.
"We just had a chat, he didn't see him on the right and that was on him.
"That type of sportsmanship is what you need to admire.
"Pretty much everyone is always complaining and moaning just to try to not get a penalty."
Hamilton's former Mercedes team-mate - and Sky Sports F1 pundit - Nico Rosberg agreed with Wolff that the seven-time world champion had handled his error admirably.
"I thought it was good of Lewis there, how accepting he was," Rosberg said.
Next up for the F1 circus are the stunning streets of Singapore under the lights. All sessions from the Singapore GP will be live on Sky Sports F1 from September 15-17. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW for just £26 a month for 12 months. Cancel anytime
