MICK SCHUMACHER suffered a high-speed crash in the first of TWO red flags at the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix. And the incident could have HUGE repercussions when it comes to who is going to win the drivers’ championship between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. Schumacher shunted his car into the barrier by turns 21 and […]
MICK SCHUMACHER suffered a high-speed crash in the first of TWO red flags at the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.
And the incident could have HUGE repercussions when it comes to who is going to win the drivers’ championship between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.
SAFETY CAR!
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) December 5, 2021
Mick Schumacher crashes into the barrier at Turn 21!
Mercedes choose to pit under this caution period, Max Verstappen stays out and takes the lead.#SaudiArabianGP live on Sky Sports F1#SkyF1 | #F1 pic.twitter.com/f5gJUdaCFG
Schumacher shunted his car into the barrier by turns 21 and 22, the same place Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc crashed during practice.
The yellow flag was immediately waved as the safety car came out.
But a few minutes later that became a red flag – which means all cars must return to the pits and await the race restart.
This was bad news for Hamilton as he and teammate Valtteri Bottas had pitted but Verstappen had not.
As a result, the Red Bull driver could change his tyres while the race was waiting for the restart – meaning he did not have to come in and give up the lead.
After being made aware of the news, a frustrated Hamilton could not believe the stewards’ decision to red flag the race.
He said: “Why is there a red flag? The tyre wall looks fine.
The seven-time champion then rather suggestively added: “I know the reason for the red flag.”
The race resumed from a standing start on the grid, with Hamilton passing Verstappen before the Dutchman went over the curb to regain the lead.
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Esteban Ocon also passed Hamilton, but Verstappen’s move will be looked at by the stewards.
In the meantime, Nikita Mazepin and Sergio Perez crashed out in the middle of the pack and yet ANOTHER red flag was issued.
Hamilton trails Verstappen by eight points in the standings with just the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to come after this weekend.
