Sergio Pérez and Lance Stroll have conflicting opinions about their first lap collision at the Chinese Grand Prix, which put a premature end to Stroll’s race and brought out the virtual safety car. Each driver has deflected blame onto one another.
The incident in question occurred on the first lap of the race at turn 10. While entering the corner, the rear of Stroll’s car made contact with the front of Pérez’s car. Stroll spun into the gravel trap, while Pérez escaped the incident with a puncture.
Sergio Pérez described the first lap in full:
“The start of the race was not easy because I made a very poor start and lost five or six places before turn one. As soon as I dropped the clutch, I went into wheel spin. I recovered some places during lap one, but then there was contact with Stroll in turn ten, which gave me a puncture. I don’t think he saw me on the inside because he didn’t give me any space.”
Lance Stroll fired back, saying that the corner was his:
“I was hit from the rear at Turn 10 and that was the end of my race. I was in front, knew the corner was mine and had to turn in eventually. It was just unfortunate as that was my race over. I got hit and then the car was broken, most likely with a puncture and damaged suspension.”
The incident was placed under investigation by the stewards, but no further action was taken against either of the drivers. The regulations say that if there is a significant portion of another car alongside your car, you need to provide the space, something that Pérez argues Stroll didn’t do.
At the end of the race, Pérez finished in P9 for two points, while Stroll chalked up his second career retirement in two races.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer or company. Assumptions made in any analysis contained within this article are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the author.
