Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton had many on-track battles before the German driver decided to retire from the sport.
While they found themselves as racing rivals for most of their career, their relationship turned into friendship in the final years of Vettel’s career.
From battling for championship titles to campaigning for societal and environmental change, Vettel and Hamilton have become close friends.
The 7-time world champion even arranged a farewell dinner party for his mate at the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where all 20 drivers came together in a rare show of unity.
However, things were not always as smooth between the duo as it is now. Speaking to the Beyond The Grid Podcast, Vettel revealed the key moment that brought them closer together.
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A crash that brought Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton closer
It was the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Vettel and Hamilton were running at the front when Vettel ploughed into the rear of Hamilton’s car while behind the safety car.
The collision damaged the front wing of Vettel’s Ferrari and the rear diffuser of the Mercedes. After the race, Vettel said that Hamilton had brake tested him and that’s what caused the collision.
Speaking at the podcast, Vettel said that he was very upset at the time. His emotional side took too much out of him in the heat of the moment.
But that was the “key moment”. “It could have made us step away from each other more or bring us together and it brought us together,” he said.
On this day in 2017, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton collided in Baku.
Sebastian felt that Hamilton had brake tested him on the safety car restart.
Sebastian was later given a 10 second stop/go penalty for the incident. pic.twitter.com/rp3zB2bJt8
— Ferrari News 🐎 (@FanaticsFerrari) June 25, 2022
Hamilton wanted to sort the matter face to face
During the time when Vettel made the accusations of Hamilton brake-testing him, the Mercedes driver had gotten extremely furious.
The Briton was so fumed that he challenged his fellow driver to sort out the matter face-to-face outside of the car. Hamilton claimed that Vettel was obviously sleeping and deliberately drove into a driver.
He further suggested that if Vettel wants to prove he’s a man, they should sort it out outside of the car.
However, speaking to the podcast, Vettel said that he had thought about what had happened and admitted that his feelings and way of communication were wrong and very unsportsmanlike. Therefore the duo talked to each other later and became closer.
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