F1 news: Lewis Hamilton takes blame for Max Verstappen incident at Imola

Lewis Hamilton has apologized after an incident with Max Verstappen during FP2 at Imola.

The pair engaged in an intense rivalry throughout the 2021 season, culminating in on-track collisions on more than one occasion, such as at Silverstone, Monza and in Saudi Arabia.

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Hamilton hasn’t won a race since Saudi Arabia in 2021, Verstappen won three world titles and has dominated the sport since then.

Verstappen’s confident reign was interrupted, albeit briefly, in free practice at Imola when he hit the gravel trap twice at turns 11 and 12, with Ferrari rival Charles Leclerc leading in both sessions – despite the Dutchman coming back and secured the pole and the race win.

Hamilton and Verstappen clash in Imola

Not only did Verstappen make uncharacteristic mistakes, but he was also involved in an incident with his former rival Lewis Hamilton.

Verstappen looked annoyed when Hamilton blocked him at the Villeneuve chicane in FP2. The Dutchman pointed at Hamilton and drove towards the Mercedes before Hamilton offered him an apologetic hand.

Hamilton took responsibility for the incident when speaking to the media following the meeting.

“I was on the cool-down lap, I thought I was completely clear, and then suddenly he was right on me,” said the seven-time world champion.

“Ultimately it was my fault and I tried to apologize, but I think he was already too frustrated.”

Aside from the incident, Hamilton and Mercedes have made progress so far this weekend having improved their car.

Hamilton finished fourth in the second practice session ahead of teammate George Russell in fifth, with the champion blaming improvements for the improvement.

“Yes, I’m really grateful to everyone at the factory for their commitment to introducing these improvements because we are seeing improvements to the car and our performance on track,” Hamilton added.

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