Verstappen crashes out of British Grand Prix

Championship contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen collided in a high-speed accident on the opening lap of the British Grand Prix, taking Vertsappen out of the race on the spot.

Verstappen, who started from pole position, was under attack from Hamilton in the opening lap, with the Mercedes driver attempting overtakes in Turn 1 (Abbey), Turn 3 (Village) and Turn 6 (Brooklands).

Hamilton got his car alongside Verstappen on the old pit straight before going to the inside at Turn 9, known as Copse.

The corner is a flat-out right hander taken at over 180 mph, but rarely sees two cars run side by side. Hamilton’s front left tyre clipped Verstappen’s rear right, sending the Red Bull into the barriers at high-speed.

Verstappen managed to get himself out of his car with the help of marshals and appeared to be winded but uninjured. He was later taken to the medical centre for checks.

Hamilton was heard on team radio telling his engineer: « He [Verstappen] turned in on me, man. »

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner was furious about the accident, telling Channel 4: « Copse is one of the fastest corners in the world, you don’t stick a wheel up the inside, that’s just dirty driving. »

The FIA race stewards investigated the incident and gave Hamilton a ten-second penalty for causing a collision.

The race was suspended moments after the incident to allow track marshals to assess the damage to the barriers.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was leading the race when the red flag came out, with Hamilton in second place and Valtteri Bottas third.