Sebastian Vettel has defended his former mentor Michael Schumacher. The seven time world champion has been roundly criticised since last Sunday's Spanish grand prix, after crashing into Williams' Bruno Senna at the end of the Barcelona straight.
He called the Brazilian driver an "idiot" on the radio and later defended the outburst, but the FIA did not agree, imposing a five-place qualifying penalty for Monte Carlo for causing a collision.
"For us, that manoeuvre of Michael's cost us a lot," Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said on Austrian Servus TV.
He said the debris from the crash not only damaged Vettel's front wing, but led to the reigning world champion having to serve a drive-through penalty due to activating his DRS wing in the yellow-flag zone.
German Vettel, however, defended Schumacher.
"In those situations we don't have much time of course," he said, "and you can get very great speed differences (between the cars) on the straights.
"I think it should be classified simply in the category of racing accidents. Unfortunately it happens," said the reigning world champion.
"Of course you can always say what is what afterwards," added Vettel, "just as you can say that it always takes two to tango."
Mercedes' Norbert Haug was less eager to comment, although he did tell Germany's Sport1 that the team "accepts the verdict of the race stewards." (GMM)
Vettel defends Schumacher after Senna crash
- Published on 16 May 2012 14:43
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- By: Danny Sosef
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Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
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Driver profile
- Team Aston Martin
- Points 1,480
- Podiums 56
- Grand Prix 161
- Country DE
- Date of b. Jul 3 1987 (39)
- Place of b. Heppenheim, DE
- Weight 62 kg
- Length 1.75 m
- 281,401 comments on Aston Martin
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- Team name Williams
- Base Grove, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
- Jacques Villeneuve 1
- Logan Sargeant 2
- Ayrton Senna 2
- Jacques Villeneuve 3
- Nicholas Latifi 6
- Jacques Villeneuve 6
- Nico Rosberg 7
- Nico Hülkenberg 10
- Nico Rosberg 10
- Jenson Button 10
- Pastor Maldonado 12
- Pastor Maldonado 16
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- Nico Rosberg 16
- Valtteri Bottas 17
- Lance Stroll 18
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- Alexander Albon 23
- Sergey Sirotkin 35
- Nyck de Vries 45
- Carlos Sainz jr 55
- George Russell 63
- Valtteri Bottas 77
- Robert Kubica 88
- 161,839 comments on Williams
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