06/07/2017
NEWS STORY
While Lewis Hamilton insists that he still has the "utmost respect" for Sebastian Vettel, the Briton clearly still has issues following last month's Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the way it was handled.
Though barely a model of contrition, the German admitted his error in last month's race whilst speaking to a packed media room at the Red Bull Ring today, even though he did his level best not to actually talk about it.
"It was the wrong move to drive alongside him and hit his tyres," said the German.
"I don't think there was any bad intention," he continued, "I don't think he actually brake-tested me. I was upset and over-reacted. I am not proud of the moment."
"We spoke after the race on the Monday and then shortly after that he messaged me, the day after, I think it was," said Hamilton.
"For me, I still have the utmost respect for him as a driver," he continued, "and will continue to race him hard through the rest of the season, in the same way I always have, no less hard than we have been already up until now.
"My only point to Sebastian was that I felt that saying that I had brake tested him, I hope you can correct that publicly because people who were watching felt that was something I did, and the data showed that was not the case. In actual fact, he accelerated. The goal was to be as close as possible to me, but that was an error in judgement.
"My only point there in the reply to him was that I hope he makes that clear," he added. "There was no need for me to do something like that as I was in the lead."
Asked to expand on the apology, he said: "The conversation we had on the Monday, wasn't actually an apology in the conversation we had, even though that perhaps was the intent. It was literally the next day when I got a text from Sebastian apologising. And I did accept it."
"It's nice to hear that we are able to move forward," said Vettel. "I think the respect we have for each other on and off track helps us in this regard."
Asked why it had taken until the FIA hearing for him to accept the blame and apologise to his rival, Vettel insisted that the issue was between him and Hamilton.
"I think the person I had to talk to was Lewis," he said. "That was the most important... and then the Monday I went to Paris to see the FIA, we had the hearing, they asked me my opinion in terms of what happened, we ran through the incident and that is what I did. I don't think there was a need in that regard to talk to you (the media) straight after. You are not the most important people I think, the most important for me is the guy I am racing with is Lewis and that is the one I decided to call first."
Asked whether he stood by his initial comments in Baku and whether Vettel should subsequently have been punished more harshly, though insisting that it is time to move on, Hamilton made clear that there remain aspects of the saga that he is unhappy with.
"I don't think anything changes, my opinion stays the same," he said. "But with all due respect, Jean should be sitting next to us to answer some questions perhaps, because I think they didn't change anything on the Monday. So the message that was sent still remains the same."
Asked if he stood by his claim that Vettel had 'disgraced' himself or whether he was merely upset and spoke in the heat of the moment, Hamilton smiled and said: "I don't feel I was particularly upset after the race. If I was upset it was for other reasons.
"I don't feel I said anything that I particularly wish to take back," he added, "but I still have the same opinion of what happened. It is water under the bridge now, we move forwards, we spoke about it, so there is no point saying much more."
Check out our Thursday gallery from Spielberg, here.