Sebastian Vettel has been slammed for his “amateur” spin at the Bahrain Grand Prix by ex-Renault driver Jolyon Palmer (yes, really).
In a head-to-head battle with Lewis Hamilton, it was the Briton who again came out on top with a bold overtake which saw the Ferrari driver lose the rear on exit and fall further down the field.
It would be a moment that capped off a pretty dismal weekend for the four-time world champion.
“A spin while battling with Lewis Hamilton and a weekend on which he was out-paced by his new teammate [Charles Leclerc] were exactly what Vettel did not need just two races into the new season,” Palmer wrote for the BBC.
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While Sebastian claims it was simply a sudden incident, the similarities between it and those he had last year can’t be ignored and that was what particularly frustrated the Briton.
“Vettel’s spin in the race in Bahrain was amateur,” he stated.
“Defending from Hamilton on the run up to Turn 4, he did the right thing to cover the inside but then Hamilton swept around him with a brilliant move.
“Vettel then lit up the rear tyres, too heavy on the throttle on the exit and simply spun the car. He was clearly flustered by the Mercedes coming through and panicked.”