Sebastian Vettel Shows Humility and Class Despite Last Lap Collision with Kimi Raikkonen

In hindsight, wasn’t a weekend Sebastian Vettel would’ve wanted to have celebrated his 34th birthday on. The German yet again failed to finish to take any points home at Red Bull Ring.

The four-time world champion qualified at P8 but started the race at P11 after FIA handed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Fernando Alonso at turn 10. The German started the race on the soft compound, which forced him to make an early pit stop. As a result, Vettel fell further behind the grid and was ultimately unable to come back to rescue points.

But during the last lap of the race, the German tried to overtake his former Ferrari teammate for the 12th position. But as soon as Vettel completed his move on the Finn, the German’s left rear tire tangled with Kimi Raikkonen’s front right. As a result, both the Alfa Romeo and Aston Martin ended up spinning into the gravel.

Kimi Raikkonen dropped to P16 and was later penalized for 20 seconds. While Sebastian Vettel retired on the spot.

Watch Story: When F1 Drivers Had a Blast on Top Gear Featuring Hamilton, Vettel & Ricciardo.

What did Sebastian Vettel say?

Sebastian Vettel explained the incident with his former teammate and friend, Kimi Raikkonen, as a mere misunderstanding.

“The contact with Kimi was a misunderstanding, I think. I thought I was both inside and ahead. I got out well from Turn 4 and was ahead of Kimi in Turn 5, going to the right. Then suddenly I felt a blow. I don’t think Kimi did it on purpose,” said the four-time world champion, Sebastian Vettel, in the post-race press conference.

(Quotes translated via Google)

After the race, the steward penalized Raikkonen for causing the collision with Vettel and handed him a 20 second time penalty as well as two penalty points. Raikkonen’s penalty at the Austrian Grand Prix means the Finn has six penalties now in the past 12 months. If the driver reaches the 12 penalty mark, he will get an automatic ban. But his treasure of experience and unmatched calm should see him steer through.

Read More: “How Many Points Did We Lose?”: Lewis Hamilton’s Post Race Radio Paints a Very Sorry Image for Mercedes

What do you think? Can Sebastian Vettel end his scoring drought at British Grand Prix? Let us know in the comments section below.