Button contact was “my bad” – Hamilton

2014 German Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton accepted blame for a collision with Jenson Button which left him with a damaged from wing during the German Grand Prix.

Hamilton lost part of his front-left wing after tangling with Button at the Spitzkehre. He eventually finished on the podium having started the race from 20th position.

“I did as good as I could today it was very hard to get through the pack safely,” said Hamilton

“I had a little bit of a collision with Jenson, I honestly thought he was opening the door to let me past. He’s been a bit like that in the last race for example so my bad on judgement there.”

Hamilton closed on Valtteri Bottas in the final laps but was unable to pass the Williams driver for second place.

“It was very hard to overtake there at the end they were so fast on the straight. But nonetheless I’m glad I got some points today.”

2014 German Grand Prix

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Image © Daimler/Hoch Zwei

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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47 comments on “Button contact was “my bad” – Hamilton”

  1. McLaren = Toro Rosso 2.0…to Mercedes?

  2. Did you really have to this a full article? @keithcollantine

    1. *make that a full article?

    2. @wil-liam Why not have a full article on this? It’s a noteworthy comment from Hamilton about one of the defining incidents of the race. These articles are common on this site (and in my view very much appreciated) as they not only allow a fuller insight into incidents that would not be possible in race reports, but the comments section can be used to discuss the matter in depth.

      If you don’t like it, then don’t read the articles!

      1. @colossal-squid

        Agreed completely!

        On top of that, incidents like this are big talking points… So it’s nice to have a dedicated comments section from the article on the topic :)

        1. since it is a big talking point, I might add – Sucked in Hamilton for taking making an unneeded mistake when you had a car that was bound to finish in 2nd no matter where you started. the qualifying was not your error this time, but you still managed to made an error during the weekend which lost you points nonetheless, that is about 4 of the last 5 races you have done that. I wouldn’t have made this comment if this article wasn’t made, but heck, why not have some fun and dramatize the extent of his mistake.

      2. I suppose we should expect an article on the Massa incident from lap 1 too.

        1. Sure, especially if those involved say something enlightening about the incident, or any other comments that come from it from other areas.

          I really don’t see what’s wrong with having articles like these. It’s Keith’s site, he can post whatever he wants. People complaining about articles being posted are sad individuals in my book. Such a trivial thing to complain about!

      3. On top, there might be more to add to the topic later and as this is Hamilton talking, could also result in a long comments section!

      4. I agree. I want to see articles like this. If you don’t like them then you don’t have to read them but for many of us, this is an interesting point.

    3. Trenthamfolk (@)
      20th July 2014, 17:10

      It’s Keith’s site, he can report on what he wants! We’re just visitors here…

    4. Ofc, just for you, my friend.

  3. Hamilton was too far behind before the braking zone. So Button was not expecting Lewis to make a move. Misjudgement, but that was okay.

    1. …. Definitely. But this mishap compromised his AND Jenson’s strategy.

  4. Classic race incydent.

  5. hamilton should have been penalised for the hits on button and kimi

    1. That’s why you’re not a marshal. let them race !!!

      1. strange post. hamiltons bad driving nothing to do with marshals. All drivers should be allowed to race not be rammed into by the ones with with poor skills . look at hamiltons record of hitting others !

        1. kimis not complaining,and most pundits dont really blame lewis.button left alot of space on the inside,plus he wasnt really racing lewis.

        2. @topscot
          Bad driving?! I think you have a terrible view of what anyone with sense, even the drivers affected, completely understand. He had no choice but to take risks just as any other driver in his position has done in the past. Faster car and the unfortunate fact of having to come from the back of the pack. Vettel comes to mind as an example of a driver forced to do the same in recent past, come from the back after an unfortunate an unlucky quantifying session. You can only do that by taking risks. Even I (not Vettel’s greatest fan) agreed with C. Horner at the end of that race when said at the end of the race “this is for those who say Seb cannot overtake”. And today was just as risky and aggressive strategy, by Mercedes.
          Bad driving?! You cannot be serious.

        3. petebaldwin (@)
          20th July 2014, 23:36

          @topscot – Hamilton’s record of hitting others? How many times has he hit another driver in the last few seasons? I wouldn’t say it’s something he’s exactly famous for. Certainly nothing like Maldonado or Massa who always seem to involved in something!

        4. @topscot

          I’m sorry but it wasn’t poor driving at all. It was a mis-understanding between two drivers. Button has even said after watching it back he can understand why Hamilton thought he was letting him by. Don’t forget its not uncommon for drivers not to defend and that’s a great spot to do it and not lose much time.

          The move on Kimi was bold, but he needed to get by and had the speed to do so. We saw Vettel pull the same move on Kimi and contact was also made. Hamilton knew he had the over speed and went for it. was it bold, yes, clumsy maybe a little, but poor driving it definitely wasn’t.

    2. Erm, Button was a clear 3 meters away from the corner apex, if thats not an indication of letting someone through, i dont know what is.

      Secondly, i suppose you also think Riccardo deserves to be punished for his collision with Raikonnen as well then? Or have you convieniantly forgot that happend?

  6. Button left a gap the size of the moon on the inside, not Lewis’ fault at all – every ‘racing’ driver would’ve tried the same. I can only assume Button couldn’t see him as Jenson looked to just swing in on him. The quieter engines wouldn’t have helped either.

    1. Ofc it was Hamilton’s fault, he said it himself also. But you know it better, right?

    2. Did you read the article above where Hamilton accepts the blame on himself? Or are you calling him a liar?

      1. That’s Hamilton trying to diffuse the situation, obviously.

      2. Michael C is right. Button left a gap and Lewis like any racer tried to pass.

        Lewis accepting the blame is smart from him: shows he prefers to change the subject than to feed polemics in the press and blogs and internet.

        He even apologise to Button on the track as we all saw. So I dont know why Button is doing all this fuss and bringing this so vehemently to the press.

        1. ” So I dont know why Button is doing all this fuss and bringing this so vehemently to the press.”

          Because he knows big Ron was at the race today and it would not have gone down well at all if he admitted he crashed while he was letting someone by, and while hes at it, take some of the heat off himself by playing the victim.

        2. Cheers mate. I also think he’s taking the blame just to settle the situation because he and Jenson get on well and he values this.

      3. I did think it was Hamilton’s fault, but interesting enough, after the race, and after having had time to see the incident from a different angle, Button himself now concedes that he can understand why Hamilton made the move – https://twitter.com/JensonButton/status/490938507633123329

  7. The damaged front wing can’t have helped his battle with Bottas. These small mistakes might eventually cost him the championship.

    He has no control of his car breaking down but he does have control of crashing into other cars, cocking up his Q3 laps and, to some degree, choosing the preferred brand of braking equipment. Rosberg does have one retirement less but do you see him making these kind of errors/misjudgements?

  8. Overall I like HAM and his style, kinda agressive, a fighter… but today was kinda pathetic, too agressive, too many collisions (Raikkonen, Ricciardo, Button) provoked by him. Although he made it to 3rd, his driving looked quite reckless and even somehow dangerous. It looked like he didn’t care about other’s (race) at all, everything he wanted was to get 1st or 2nd, no matter the consequences. In my opinion, he got to the point where a penalty should have been taken into consideration. With every race, ALO seems like the best driver from the field. He had lots of fights in the last 2 races, wheel to wheel ad literam (it was funny to hear some TV commentaries saying that HAM has wheel-to-wheel battles… when he was passing the opponents so easy on the straights), over many laps… yet not a single collision.

    1. Erik Torsner
      20th July 2014, 18:31

      +1

    2. First of all, he didn’t collide with Riccardo, so stop making things up. Secondly Riccardo himself collided with Raikonnen in the exact same place, and manner, as Lewis, why is noone talking about that? And thirdly, Hamiltons contact with Raikonnen was so minor that it barly broke off the weakest part of the front wing, and a centimeter or so to the right and there’d have been no contact at all, and people like you wouldn’t have anything to winge about.

      Awesome race by Lewis when people where predicting maybe only 4th for him today, when he could have had 2nd, if not for the early last pit stop, maybe even 1st if Race Control did the correct thing and bring out the safety car and not endanger the lives of the marshals by making them run across the racing line of a blind, high speed bend.

      There are far more serious talking points of this race than some very minor contact of someones front wing and the outside of Hamiltons wheel rim.

    3. And why is this a bad thing?

      If you want to win a championship and your starting at the back of the grid you’re going to have to take risks especially against Red Bulls, Mclarens and Ferraris which are relatively fast cars. Every single risk he took paid off for him especially the one on Kimi where he made up 2 difficult places in one bold move – why should he care about anyone elses race? He is racing for himself and he didn’t ruin anyone elses race at all.

      The difference between 2nd and 3rd wasn’t the missing endplate it was the pitstop gamble on the safety car which was the right thing to do as in 99% of cases that would have been a safety car. If his Soft tyres hadn’t been the extra 4-5 laps older he wouldn’t have been in as bad shape.

    4. This is why Hamilton gets so much flak: he admits his error in presuming Button was leaving a gap, while Button fails to recognize his own (bigger) error of getting off line and driving back into Hamilton who was making a legitimate enough attempt to pass. The alternative is act like Massa or Maldonado, I guess, never ever accept you’ve done something. Poor, sour attitude from Button.

      1. You gotta give it to button! He watched it and even acknowledged why Ham thought he was giving him space.

    5. only button has a complaint about lewis,not the others drivers you mentioned.infact kimi said lewis and vettels moves were ok……its racing,but button wasnt even racing lewis,he knew where lewis was and left a massive gap.

    6. Calm your tits. He wasn’t complaining about Hamiltons driving, rather just answering a question he was asked about the collision.

      1. @aced

        Classic comment, Calm your tits,

        spat ale out my nose :)

    7. You were watching a different race to me then. Hamilton’s overtaking was sublime.

    8. I liked seeing a bit of aggression from Hamilton, he keeps saying how when he goes out he only thinks about winning etc, but I didn’t feel he was taking the kind of opportunities that would back up a statement like that in some races. Although that might be because he’s more mature than me, and has learnt to play the long game.

  9. Not Hamilton’s fault in my eyes. Button left the barn door open and then cut back in.

  10. I actually thought it was Button’s fault. By the time Button decided to start turning, Hamilton was already half way beside him. I think it was just Button being slightly absent from what was going on around him. Not Hamilton’s fault.
    It is however Hamilton’s fault that he isn’t being more careful when looking at the championship as a whole.

  11. Both made a mistake in this, Button for running wide and Lewis for thinking he was letting him pass. Lewis is trying to win a championship and Button trying for a decent points score but you should never, in my personal view, allow another driver through for no reason. Tactics may play a part but they should at least make the driver behind work for it.

  12. They´re racing not taking the five o´clock tea. I like the way Hammilton drives, that´s why is a F1 champion.

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