Niki Lauda thinks Michael Schumacher should have admitted his mistake in Singapore – Formula 1 news
Former Formula 1 driver, Niki Lauda has said that Michael Schumacher of Mercedes should have admitted his mistake right away after hitting Jean-Eric Vergne of Toro Rosso in the 2012 Singapore Grand Prix.
Schumacher smashed Vergne from behind at turn 14 of Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore as he lost control over his car and resultantly both the drivers were retired.
Afterwards, the seven-time world champion said that he tried his best to stop the car for the turn but could not be able to do so as his brakes didn’t work.
Even though, the record championship holder apologised to the Frenchman just after the accident and kept on saying that it was not his fault as he faced some technical issue in his car. However, the race stewards think that there was nothing wrong with the
German driver’s car and have given him a ten-place grid penalty for the next race.
On the other hand, Lauda has said that if the most celebrated driver in the history of the sport had admitted his mistake, he might not have received such strict penalty.
“What bothers me,” Lauda told Osterreich newspaper, “is that Michael didn’t say right from the beginning that he was to blame.”
Furthermore, he said that if there was anything wrong with the car, the race stewards won’t have penalised Schumacher.
“If something had been wrong,” Lauda told Welt newspaper, “then the FIA would not have punished him. I would have preferred if he had admitted his mistake, because mistakes can happen to everybody.”
There have been many speculations that the unpleasant incident happened because the legendary driver is now 43-year-old. However, the three-time world champion said that it is senseless to say that the accident occurred because Schumacher is now too old
to race as he believes that such incidents can also be caused by young drivers.
“That is all just stupid speculation by the same people who were saying the opposite after qualifying in Monaco. The accident might as well have happened to a twenty year old. It’s a cheap shot to say it’s about his age,” he added.
Tags: