Awful day for Ferrari with double DNF

For the first time since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix, neither Ferrari was classified as a finisher in today’s Mexico race. Sebastian Vettel made contact with Daniel Ricciardo at the start which gave him a puncture. The stewards investigated the incident, but no penalty was given.

“He was never really next to me and then I saw him in the last second and then I opened [the gap], I saw just his nose but by then it was too late and I had already a feeling turning into turn 2 and turn 3 and then [the puncture] was clear down the straight.

“I’m sure that this kind of stuff you can’t do on purpose, so I’m not blaming him. In the end, where did he want to go, no room, but we are all trying our best so obviously it’s a pain when it hits you, especially in turn 1 but that’s how it is.

Ricciardo said: “I was just there, and I wasn’t necessarily making a move or anything but at the start you just all bunch up and I was just there on the inside. I didn’t feel like I could go anywhere else and he just basically took the apex as if I wasn’t there. I really don’t know what else I could have done.”

On a recovery drive, Vettel spun in the esses and later crashed at turn 7, when his car oddly refused to turn in to the corner. He seemed to be blaming himself for the retirement. When asked after the race if everything was ok with the car when he crashed, he replied with a simple: “Yeah”.

Kimi Raikkonen also crashed out after a collision with Valtteri Bottas. Raikkonen was yet to pit, and Bottas tried to go around the outside of turn 4 to get the inside for the following corner, but they met at the apex and Raikkonen was out with left-rear suspension damage. Once again, the stewards investigated but neither driver was found guilty.

“We touched and I lost a wheel and I end the race. That’s life and it doesn’t change anything, Raikkonen said, “It’s racing. I haven’t even seen the pictures but the end result obviously wasn’t ideal for me but that’s how it goes.”

Bottas after the race looked to place the blame on his countryman.

“To be honest, it didn’t have to end up like that,” he said, “No matter who that would have been, I would have tried the same, because I saw a real opportunity there and, normally, in this kind of situation there is space for two cars in that kind of corner, and especially if the car on the outside knows that there is one on the inside. So it’s a shame it ended like that.

“For sure, he saw me. We were side by side into turn 4 so I’m sure that he knew I was there.”

#f1