Verstappen baffled by Vettel maneuver at start

Max Verstappen laid the blame of the accident which eliminated the Red Bull driver and his Ferrari rivals at the start of the Singapore GP with Sebastian Vettel.

The Dutch driver was squeezed by the German at the start as the pack barreled down towards Turn 1, finding himself sandwiched between the two Ferraris which made contact before mayhem ensued.

Raikkonen and Verstappen retired on the spot while Vettel spun further down the road before permanently stopping at the end of the lap.

Front-runners to face post-race investigation

"I think mainly Sebastian started squeezing me - maybe he didn't see Kimi but that's not an excuse," said a disgruntled Verstappen.

"If you are fighting for a world championship you shouldn't take those risks. You can see what happened - Lewis is now leading the race.

Verstappen reckoned there wasn't much he could do when events were put into motion, but was comforted by the fact that the main culprit of the incident, and his team mate, also suffered the pain.
"I tried to back out of it, I could see it coming," he added.

"I don't think it was a racing incident, it took three cars out. I'm happy that not only me but the three of us retired, so we all have a bit of pain..."

Ferrari begged to differ with Verstappen however as the Scuderia's official Twitter account wrote: VER took #Kimi7 out and then he went to #Seb5 #SingaporeGP.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.