Daniel Ricciardo has hit out at 'fans' at Spa who cheered when Lewis Hamilton crashed out during FP3.

The Briton lost the rear of his car after clipping a kerb and speared into the tyre wall at Turn 12, much to the obvious delight of the crowd at that spot who cheered loudly.

Hamilton subsequently took to social media to admit his disappointment at the cheering, claiming that many people, including some race fans, do not appreciate enough the danger racing drivers face, this at a time the sport was by now mourning the death of F2 star Anthoine Hubert.

Speaking to reporters in Monza, which has witnessed more than its fair share of tragedy over the years, Daniel Ricciardo, who was deeply affected by Hubert's death, to the extent that he considered withdrawing from last Sunday's race, admitted frustration and anger at those who cheered Hamilton's crash.

"Whether you like someone or not, it is not nice to cheer for someone's downfall or mistake," said the Australian.

"He thinks the crowd assume the crash happens and we are okay or whatever, and it is not like that," he added, referring to Hamilton social media post.

"Every time we go on track there is a risk and every time we do hit a wall, whether we are okay or not, it still plays on your mind," he continued. "Every time you go back to that corner, maybe there is something psychological there.

"So it does have an impact one way or the other, physically or mentally, and I guess that is where he was coming from with that.

"I agree with him," he admitted. "But it is also so hard because the fans, unless you race and put yourself in that position, never experience what we do. It is the nature of being a fan of a sport you don't compete in. It is hard to grasp or understand.

"All we can ask for is that if you are a fan, then be a true fan and respect what we do, not only the skill but also the risk. That is probably all we can ask.

"I don't wish it upon anyone and I only knew it happened with Lewis because I read that he said it had," said the Australian. "Having rivals and whatever, you don't have to like every driver... but to behave like that, you would expect it from kids but not adults. You would hope they would behave better."

Perhaps Ricciardo should now ask the official F1 website why it felt the need to label footage of Hamilton's crash "must see".

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by JoeF1, 06/09/2019 18:03

"I feel that fans are being wrongly accused. Fans are cheering that a competitor, whom they may not particularly like, is "out" of the race or qualifying, not the crash itself. Nor are they rejoicing that a driver is injured.

For most people, the cheering will turn the opposite direction as soon as it's obvious a driver, marshal, spectator, or anyone else is injured or worse. Let's face it most drivers that got a cheer when they crashed also received a massive round of applause from the same grandstand immediately after, a showing of appreciation for the risks they took in the first place — bravo to you brave chap, I may not like you, but I do appreciate you.

To whitewash every fan who ever cheered at a crash is a very simplistic black and white view of the world, some would see this as being a crass statement. Let's be honest with each other, the difference between Hamilton's crash and the crash that took Hubert from us are galaxies apart, and most fans realize this. If you can find any videos that show fan's cheering when they know a driver is hurt, please post some."

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2. Posted by Batman, 05/09/2019 20:21

"You said it all, Steve. I think I will just add this: may the FIA draw conclusions and prevent from recurring in the same way, from every single fatality."

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3. Posted by SteveAikens, 05/09/2019 18:53

"I'm with Ric. I'm not a fan of Ham but I don't wish him - or any driver to crash. I want a sport I have followed since the 1970's to be as safe as possible and wins/losses to be on the skill of the teams and drivers. I don't want to see drivers at risk, regardless whether I am in his/her corner or not.

I think cheering for a drivers misfortune in a crash is crass at best."

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Ricciardo hits out at 'fans' who cheered Hamilton crash

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