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88 comments on Rosberg fastest as Maldonado crashes in Monaco

1. 

   Funkyf1 (@funkyf1) said on 26th May 2012, 11:30

   Slippery session out there, you forgot to mention that Glock also kissed the barrier and even Vettel gave it lick. Is it a grip issue or is everyone just feeling the pressure in this close championship? it’s anyone’s game at the moment.

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2. 

   duncanmonza (@duncanmonza) said on 26th May 2012, 11:33

   Carn Felipe!

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3. 

   Jenkins (@jenkins) said on 26th May 2012, 11:34

   Video of Mal – Perez incident
   http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xr4ei0_pastor-maldonado-drives-into-sergio-perez-2012-monaco-gp-fp3_auto

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4. 

   Dimitris 1395 (@) said on 26th May 2012, 11:34

   I can see an exclusion from both Qualifying and race for Maldonado. Unexplicably bad driver for the Benezuelan driver…

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   • 

     Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys) said on 26th May 2012, 12:21

     If the stewards banned drivers from races for “inexplicably bad driving”, Lewis Hamilton would probably be out of the sport until 2016.

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5. 

   alexf1man (@alexf1man) said on 26th May 2012, 11:54

   In the second table, it should say Thursday instead of Friday (due to the unique running of this weekend).

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6. 

   Carlo Grlj (@hawkey) said on 26th May 2012, 12:14

   lolz at maldonado.. trying to be someone with no success.. poor guy.. I wasnt expecting nothing more after the win in Spain. So weak :S

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7. 

   Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys) said on 26th May 2012, 12:16

   Okay, I have now watched the video of the incident between Maldonado and Perez over a dozen times, and I think I have a very reasonable explanation for it being a racing incident. In order to understand how I have come to this conclusion, we need to examine two things: Maldonado’s demeanour, and the physical geography of the Monaco circuit.

   First of all, Maldonado. Yes, he has a track record of deliberately crashing into other drivers. However, in reviewing the incident, the stewards gave Lewis Hamilton a reprimand and Pastor Maldonado a minor grid penalty. I can think of no plausible explanation for this other than the stewards feeling that Maldonado was provoked by Hamilton, and lashed out. High angles of the incident show Hamilton squeezing Maldonado wide out of the Bus Stop and forcing him off the dry racing line. Whether or not Hamilton was within his rights to do this is beside the point – given the rapid improvement of lap times in Q2 at the time, Maldonado evidently felt that he stood a chance at improving his grid position until Hamilton forced him onto the wet circuit. I am not making an attempt to justify Maldonado’s reaction at the time, but simply highlighting that his behavior was triggered by an antecedant: namely, that Hamilton squeezed him wide, and he retaliated. However, in reviewing this incident with Sergio Perez, I can see nothing from Perez that would have set Maldonado off. Perez was visibly slower than Maldonado, and well off the racing line at the time of the collision. He did not, as near as I can tell, block, impede or otherwise obstruct Maldonado. Furthermore, this is free practice; lap times are not important here. Completing a testing programme is. Therefore, Maldonado had no reason to intentionally drive into Perez.

   Secondly, the physical geography of the circuit. Portier has an unusual line with a very late turn-in for the apex. It is also a blind corner, and the racing line carries the drivers out to the far side of the circuit. When he approached Perez, Maldonado visibly accelerates. Significantly, he also appears to be travelling faster than Jenson Button behind him, who was able to take the correct racing line. Therefore, I am prepared to write this off as a racing incident. At the time of the incident, Perez was positioned in such a way that Maldonado would have been unable to properly see the apex of Portier, which is already difficult enough to spot. He accelerates to get around the Sauber, but makes a mistake whilst trying to judge the apex, the position of his car relative to Perez, and compensate for his increased speed at the time. As a result, he turns in too early, probably expecting Perez to slow down further to either let him through or because the Sauber has a problem.

   In the end, I don’t think Pastor Maldonado is guilty of anything more than trying to pass a slower car at a place that doesn’t really allow for it. Between the established pattern of his behavior and the geography of the corner, I simply cannot make any case for this being an intentional act. Maldonado had nothing to gain from crashing into Perez.

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8. 

   DT (@dt) said on 26th May 2012, 12:28

   This is the second time he’s done that and the stewards and his team need to have a good word with him. He’s just been given 10 place grid penalty but i think thats not enough. His behaviour is not acceptable in any sports

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9. 

   AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner) said on 26th May 2012, 12:35

   Looked rather foolish from Maldonado. I think you can attribute it to a bit of his aggressive flare from last year, his high regard at Monaco and on the back of a win from Barcelona. I imagine he just got over-confident. Just heard he got a ten place penalty which is appropriate.

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10. 

    N said on 26th May 2012, 14:39

    Have to say, i agree with Coulthard, Perez wheel didnt seem to turn under load through the fast chicane, it was Perez first hotlap since Maldonado hit his front left…

    Reply

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