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F1 Brazilian GP: Grosjean blames puncture for Ocon clash

Romain Grosjean says a puncture was the cause for his first-lap incident with Esteban Ocon that sent him spinning into gravel

Romain Grosjean says a puncture was the cause for his first-lap incident with Esteban Ocon that sent him spinning into gravel - and awarded a 10-second time penalty.

The Haas driver battled for position against his fellow countryman on the opening lap at turn four but after hitting debris from the turn two clash involving Daniel Ricciardo, Stoffel Vandoorne and Kevin Magnussen, Grosjean believes his spin was caused by a puncture which sent him into Ocon.

Grosjean was slapped with an 10-second time penalty for the incident - and two penalty points on his super license - which sparked further calls of inconsistency from stewards for penalising the French driver during the race despite a potential puncture being the cause.

"The only thing I can say about the opening lap is that I got massively hit in turn one. I believe I had a puncture on the rear left," Grosjean said. "I got to turn six and lost the car, and I think it was just the puncture."

During the race, Grosjean was told on lap 45 that he had to pit and take the time penalty, responding: "This is a joke."

He said the incident was punishment enough, saying "Getting a penalty on top of that - I'm not super happy with it. I want to see the footage."

Zdroj: crash.net