F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Ocon lashes out at Raikkonen for opening lap clash!

Where most may have seen a simple racing incident, Force India's Esteban Ocon saw only one man responsible for his demise on the opening lap of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Ocon and Raikkonen were barrelling down to Turn 3 after the start when the Ferrari driver made an attempt to pass the Force India on the inside of the corner.

The two made contact, with Ocon pitched into a slide and coming to rest against the outside wall while the Ferrari was able to continue its race.

There were no doubts in the Frenchman's mind about who had been ultimately responsible for the clash.

"Clearly I had a great start, really good, I managed to overtake him in turn 2, I was ahead of him on the straight. I was completely ahead, he was behind," Ocon told French broadcaster Canal +.

"I don't know what he did, he released the brakes and hit me."

A frustrated and obviously disappointed Ocon saw a big opportunity for points being blown away. The 21-year-old also believed that the perpetrator of his demise -as a Ferrari driver - should have been racing further up the field

"It's clearly a missed opportunity after a great start to the weekend. I think Perez is going to score a lot of points, it's good for the team.

"What do we want to tell Kimi? He doesn't talk. He's not in the position he should be with a Ferrari.

"He made a mistake yesterday, he made another one today."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

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

Michael Delaney

Recent Posts

François Cevert: The Prince who would have been King

François Cevert - seen here trying for size his future Tyrrell 005 at the British…

29 mins ago

Hamilton’s winning advice in the age of AI: ‘Stay curious’

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton isn’t just revving up for a new Formula 1 season…

2 hours ago

Ecclestone and Briatore unleash on ‘chaotic’ 2026 F1 season

Former F1 ringmaster Bernie Ecclestone and Alpine’s executive advisor Flavio Briatore may have mellowed with…

3 hours ago

Cadillac F1 entry hits $1 billion before first Grand Prix

Cadillac hasn’t started a Formula 1 race yet – but the meter is allegedly already…

4 hours ago

Mercedes F1 customer teams set for engine upgrade for Melbourne

Mercedes’ F1 customer teams are poised to receive a timely boost ahead of the season-opening…

5 hours ago

F1 boss Domenicali on why Apple TV will shatter ESPN’s records

Formula 1 is gearing up for a new digital era in the United States –…

21 hours ago