Fernando Alonso has apologised for the comment he made about Lewis Hamilton in the moments following their Spa clash.
"What an idiot!" shouted the Spaniard over his radio after being hit by the Mercedes driver as they entered Les Combes on the first lap. "Closing the door from the outside. We had a great start, but this guy only knows how to drive and start in first."
In the midst of the incident, which saw Hamilton's car thrown into the air after their wheels touched, the Spaniard gesticulated at his rival for good measure.
Though he took full blame for the clash, saying that Alonso had been in his blind spot, Hamilton refused to become embroiled in a war of words with the two-time world champion.
"I don't really have a response to it," the Briton told reporters when advised of Alonso's comment. "I know that's how things feel in the heat the moment.
"It's nice to know how he feels about me in a way," he added, "better that it's out in the open, how he feels.
"Like I said, it wasn't intentional and I take responsibility for it. That's what adults do."
Asked if he would apologise personally to Alonso, Hamilton said: "I would have until I heard what he said."
Though admitting regret at his initial reaction to the incident, Alonso hit out at the media for its involvement.
"It made a huge thing," said Alonso at today's press conference at Zandvoort. "First of all it's Lewis, he's a champion, he's a legend of our time.
"But when you say something, and I'm sorry to repeat this, against a British driver, there is a huge media involvement after that.
"They've been saying a lot of things to Checo, to Carlos, to me. If you say something to a Latin driver, everything is a little bit more fun. When you say something to others, it's a little bit more serious, but anyway, yes I apologise."
Referring to his claim about Hamilton only knowing "how to drive and start in first", the Spaniard added: "No, I don't believe that. It's not that I believe or don't believe, there are facts that it is not that way.
"It is something that you say in the heat of the moment, but nothing that I said is true and there are facts that are completely the opposite. So I have huge respect.
"I don't think that it was much to blame in that moment looking at the replays to be honest," he said of the incident, "because it was a first-lap incident and we are close together. The heat of the moment, the adrenaline of the moment, fighting finally for the top two, top three made me say those comments that I should not say.
"At the same time I said after the race that it was a racing incident in my opinion. When you say something on the radio, in that moment you think you are talking to your engineer, so you are preparing the strategy, you start in the top three, you overtake Checo in the first corner and running second. And then something happens and you say something to your mate. To your colleague, to your engineer in that moment.
"Obviously you should be aware that it should be broadcasted, but it's like if someone makes a hard tackle or something in football. In that moment you say something to your teammate or whatever, and in that moment it's not broadcasted. Before the race or after the race, I said what I was thinking. On the radio, I said something that I was not... I don't think that way."
Asked if he has apologised to his former teammate, he said: "No, not yet but I will hopefully see him today. When we are doing the TV pen I will approach him and say sorry if he understood in that way. I have absolutely no problems with him and I have huge respect for him."
Check out our Thursday gallery from Zandvoort here.
sign in