Lewis will hit him one day.. not with the car but with his FIST
LAUDA’S FEARS AS CHAOTIC RACE ENDS IN BITTER WAR OF WORDS
NIKI LAUDA fears the bad blood between Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel will erupt into physical violence.
Mercedes boss Lauda reacted furiously after seeing Vettel ram Hamilton in Baku.
It was just one incident in a chaotic race which also featured four safety periods, one red flag, and an emergency pit stop for Hamilton for a loose head restraint.
Asked if the ramming incident tainted Vettel’s reputation, motor-racing legend Lauda said: “Sure. He freaked out in himself.
“Lewis will hit him one day. Not with the car but with the fist. If I was Lewis, I would speak to Sebastian and ask him what is wrong.
“Sebastian said he didn’t do anything wrong. This is his normal reaction. After three days hopefully he realises.
“When you hit somebody up the a*** it is your fault. No question. But to drive next to him and hit him on purpose, I have never seen anything like this. Vettel is a decent guy, normally. This I don’t understand. He is crazy.”
Ferrari’s Vettel rammed into the back of the Mercedes man as the safety car was deployed for a second time. Then the German, 29, furiously gesticulating with both hands, pulled alongside Hamilton and side-swiped his rival’s car.
Vettel denied any wrongdoing, accused Hamilton of brake-testing him, and claimed his 10-second stop-and-go penalty, and then three points on his driver’s licence, were unduly harsh.
Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo won the race, while Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas recovered from last to finish second as rookie Lance Stroll, 18, completed the podium.
Vettel finished fourth, while Hamilton crossed the line just 0.2 seconds behind his rival.
But four-time champion Vettel is now under pressure to apologise to Hamilton and Formula One for bringing the sport into disrepute.