Max Verstappen’s calm response to Kimi Antonelli crash in Austria sparks debate on fairness in F1. Max Verstappen calmly forgave Kimi Antonelli after their collision at the Austrian GP.

At the end of the Austrian GP, both Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli commented on the start-line incident.

The collision at the start of the Austrian Grand Prix between Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen was one of the main highlights of Sunday at the Red Bull Ring. After a fiercely contested early phase, the race action became less thrilling, with few battles and not many surprises.

Kimi Antonelli’s comment on the contact
Immediately after the race, the Mercedes rookie commented on what happened with Max Verstappen. “It was a big mistake. It’s a shame because when I braked, I didn’t brake late but locked the rear tires and from there the disaster began. I had to avoid Lawson and also locked the front tires. I feel sorry for Max and my team. I expect a penalty even though I hope it doesn’t happen,” said the Mercedes driver.

The stewards later handed Kimi Antonelli a three-place grid penalty to be served at the start of the Silverstone Grand Prix.

A calm Max forgives Kimi
For his part, Max Verstappen didn’t seem too affected by the incident. “It’s not a problem. I get along with Kimi and I know he didn’t do it on purpose, no one does. At the moment, I didn’t realize what had happened, so I asked him for explanations. The championship is already far away; it doesn’t depend on today’s zero,” said the current world champion, surprisingly relaxed considering that, in some ways, the Red Bull Ring is his home race.