Hungarian Grand Prix halted after first lap chaos

01 August 2021 - 15:40 By Reuters
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A general view of the crash at the start during the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on August 01, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary.
A general view of the crash at the start during the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on August 01, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary.
Image: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

The Hungarian Grand Prix was halted on Sunday after opening lap collisions, including Red Bull's Formula One leader Max Verstappen, left debris on a wet and slippery track.

Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and Red Bull's Sergio Perez were all immediate retirements.

Bottas made a sluggish start and was passed by Lando Norris and Verstappen, but the Finn then braked way too late into the corner and went into the back of Norris's McLaren, which collided with Verstappen.

"I'm sorry guys," Bottas, who also collided with Perez, said over the radio.

Verstappen continued, dropping from third to 13th with a heavily damaged car while Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton led away cleanly from pole position.

Leclerc was taken out by Stroll running into him.

McLaren then decided to retire Norris after the red flags came out, leaving 15 cars in the race.


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