The Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2017 was one of the most high-octane races we have seen this year so far. From the number of accidents to the safety car being deployed regularly to Daniel Ricciardo winning the race and Lance Stroll coming third and for the first time both Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel finished outside of the top three.
Apart from all that, there was one incident in particular that caught the eye of every Formula One fan out there. During one of the many times when the safety car was being used, Vettel went on to ram into Hamilton from behind and then pulled alongside the Brit and swerved into him, banging wheels.
Also read: Lewis Hamilton wants Sebastian Vettel face to face after Azerbaijan incident
Vettel received a 10-second stop-go penalty for the incident and three points on his superlicence -- moving him closer to a one-race ban but the German believed that punishing only him was not the right decision.
"We're here to race. We're grownups and people expect us to race and use our elbows, that's what people want. Here and there you might get a bit close but people want real overtaking not just us driving past. I enjoyed the race but I don't think it's the right thing that I got a penalty and he didn't," Motorsport.com quoted Vettel as saying.
Despite that 10-second penalty Vettel still managed to finish ahead of his world championship rival because Hamilton was forced to make a pit stop as his head rest was not fixed properly. After the race, Hamilton described Vettel's actions as disgraceful and wanted to sort out the issue face to face and the Brit will get a chance to do exactly that.
Hamilton and Vettel's rivalry will definitely heat up for the rest of the Formula One season after this incident but the Ferrari driver insists that he does not have a problem with his Mercedes rival and said he is willing to sort it out.
"I don't have a problem with him. I respect him a lot for the driver he is. I don't think that was his intention to damage my front wing because he's also risking damage to his car, and his race is over," Vettel said.
"Now is not the right time to talk. I'll do that just with him and clear it and move on. Maybe I'm not clever enough but I'm not complicated. I'm willing to sort it out with him. I don't think there's much to sort out," he added.
