Max verstappen had an accident on his way to visit his …
Max Verstappen suffered an embarrassing moment in British Grand Prix qualifying as he crashed in the pit lane while exiting his garage. It happened during the first part of the session at the end of a red flag period.29 april 2024
Red Bull driver Verstappen, 23, collided with the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton on the entry to the high-speed Copse corner and suffered what his team boss Christian Horner described as a “51G impact” with the barriers.
The race was red-flagged and Hamilton was later handed a 10-second time penalty by stewards over his role in the crash.
A Red Bull statement read: “Following a first-lap incident at Copse Corner between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton at the British Grand Prix, we can confirm that Max Verstappen walked away from his car and was immediately taken to the Silverstone Circuit Medical Centre.
“Following an assessment by the trackside doctors at Silverstone Circuit Medical Centre, Max Verstappen has been taken to a local hospital for further precautionary tests.”
Hamilton’s time penalty meant he faced a fight to claim victory in Verstappen’s absence, but roared on by his home crowd he reeled in Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to claim a dramatic win that reduces Verstappen’s championship lead to eight points.
Speaking after the race, F1’s medical rescue coordinator Dr Ian Roberts described Verstappen as “a little bit shaken”, adding the hospital visit was for a “routine check-up”.
“There is always a possibility of concussion so we have to try to exclude that. Even if it looks as though there isn’t, we keep that very much in mind,” he told Sky Sports. “[There are] no other injuries apparent at the moment.”
Verstappen’s collision with Hamilton was arguably the most spectacular moment of the 2021 season so far – and its most controversial.
Pole-sitter Verstappen had been battling with the seven-time world champion from the start, the pair running side-by-side before the Dutchman aggressively defended at Brooklands.
Hamilton then got the run up the inside as they approached the 190mph Copse corner, but Verstappen held his ground and his right rear wheel was tagged by Hamilton’s front left, sending him crashing heavily into the barriers and bringing out the red flag.
Hamilton was quickly on the radio to defend his actions, saying: “I was ahead going in there, man. Fully alongside, it was my line. He turned in on me, man… I’d given the guy space.”
Mercedes sporting director Ron Meadows was also in damage-limitation mode, telling the race stewards that “Lewis was significantly alongside on the inside of Turn Nine”.
But over at Red Bull, perhaps unsurprisingly, the opposite point of view was angrily being made.
Team boss Horner called it a “hollow victory” and maintained Hamilton was “completely out of order to stick a wheel up the inside”.
He added on Channel 4: “Everyone who’s driven that corner knows you don’t stick a wheel up the inside at Copse. He’s put him in the fence. Thank God he’s not been hurt. It was a desperate move.
“You do not stick a wheel up at Copse, one of the fastest corners in the world. That’s just dirty driving.”
Speaking after the race, Horner said of Verstappen’s condition: “He was very heavily winded, but he was conscious throughout.
“It’s a precaution that he’s gone to the hospital. Thankfully he got out of the car unaided and thankfully he’s OK.”
Asked about the 10-second penalty handed to Hamilton, he replied: “Wasn’t much of a penalty reall.
