Suggestions Lewis Hamilton suffered an injury in his crash with Max Verstappen at Monza are just a “show”, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko claims.
The seven-time world champion was hit in the back of his helmet by the right-rear wheel on the Dutchman’s car as it bounced over the top of the Mercedes during their collision during last Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix.
Later, Hamilton criticised Verstappen for not checking on him after exiting his Red Bull and said he would seek specialist treatment for a strained neck that was getting “tighter and tighter” following the accident, but Marko wasn’t convinced.
“It was a normal racing accident,” he told the Osterreich newspaper. “All the stories around it were pulled up by the hair by Mercedes.
A dramatic new angle on the Hamilton/Verstappen collision#ItalianGP ?? #F1 pic.twitter.com/PvN2KGUbbi
— Formula 1 (@F1) September 14, 2021
“Verstappen had already got out when Hamilton tried to reverse to get out of the gravel. The medical car saw that and drove on.
“And then a show is put on that poor Hamilton is suddenly injured.”
Certainly, it must be said any injury didn’t stop Lewis flying direct from Milan to New York for the Met Gala on Monday.
However, one fact being roundly commended is the role the Halo played in protecting the Briton.
“Thank God for the Halo. It saved me,” Hamilton said. “I don’t think I’ve ever been hit on the head by a car before. My head really is quite far forward.
“I’ve been racing a long, long time, I’m so so grateful that I’m still here.
“Feel incredibly blessed, like somebody was watching over me today.”
It’s days like today, I am reminded of how lucky I am. It takes a millisecond to go from racing to a very scary situation. Today someone must have been looking down, watching over me! #TeamLH: I’m so thankful for each and everyone of you, you are truly the best. Still we rise! pic.twitter.com/H2sGtXPKrr
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) September 12, 2021
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff echoed his driver, adding: “The Halo definitely saved Lewis’s life today.
“It would have been a horrible accident that I don’t want to even think about if we wouldn’t have had the Halo.”
That point was also conceded by Marko…
“Even if I was sceptical [of the Halo] at first,” he said, “I have to admit just like in the fire accident, the Halo was decisive in ensuring that things turned out so well.”
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