Lewis Hamilton contacted Max Verstappen this week following the Dutchman’s crash at Silverstone. The seven-time world champion indicated after the race that he would approach the World Cup leader. That has now happened, several sources around the Red Bull Racing and Mercedes teams report.
No announcements will be made about the content of the conversation. Hamilton said on Sunday he does not intend to apologize. The Briton tapped Verstappen after an intense fight in the first lap, after which the Limburger crashed into the tire stack at high speed. Hamilton was given a ten-second time penalty, but still won the race and narrowed the gap with Verstappen in the World Cup position to eight points.
Verstappen spent hours in hospital for medical checks and was outraged by the way Hamilton went wild in front of his own audience afterwards. He called it “unsportsmanlike and disrespectful.”
The Red Bull driver himself escaped unscathed and was inundated with reactions and wishes in the following days. Apart from Hamilton, it reportedly remained silent from the Mercedes top. Red Bull, like other teams, did rally behind the joint statement by Mercedes and Formula 1 on Monday in response to racist statements addressed to Hamilton on social media. The last race before the summer break is scheduled in a week and a half, at the Hungaroring in Budapest.
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