Fernando Alonso labelled 'f***ing idiot' by F1 rival after huge Brazil GP smash

04 November 2023 , 15:37

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Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon crashed in the Brazil Sprint Shootout (Image: Sky Sports)

Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon renewed their Formula 1 rivalry in a hefty collision during the Sprint Shootout in Brazil.

The incident happened at the end of the first part of the short-form qualifying session. Alonso was moving slowly on track, while his former Alpine team-mate Ocon was on a flying lap and tried to fly past the Aston Martin.

But they made contact, Ocon's car slamming into the front-left wheel of Alonso's machine and spinning off track to slam into the barrier. It wrecked the Alpine, while also causing significant damage to the Aston Martin.

Replays showed Alonso had jerked to the left and could have left more room for the Frenchman. But Ocon was not in full control of his car after taking too much kerb and having to correct his steering, leaving him unable to avoid the collision.

Despite his role in causing the incident, Ocon made it clear that he felt his rival was at fault. He called his former team-mate a "f***ing idiot" over the radio, while Alonso claimed: "He went into me."

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The collision ended both drivers' sessions. Ocon was in the bottom five at the time of the crash meaning he wouldn't have progressed even if there was no damage to his car, while Alonso's Aston Martin needed too much work to be able to get it back out on track for SQ2 and so he had to settle for 15th on the Sprint grid.

Both drivers were summoned by the stewards after the session to explain themselves. But given both drivers appeared to contribute to the crash, it is unlikely that either will be given a penalty.

Lando Norris made up for a disappointing qualifying session on Friday to secure pole for the Sprint. He managed to go a few hundredths of a second faster than Max Verstappen while Sergio Perez also came close to setting the quickest time.

George Russell was faster than Norris after the first two sectors of his final flying lap. But he lost time in the final part of the circuit and had to settle for fourth on the grid, one place ahead of Lewis Hamilton who never really threatened pole.

AlphaTauri also put their poor qualifying performance behind them to show an excellent one-lap pace in the Shootout. Yuki Tsunoda admitted after the session he was surprised to go sixth quickest, while Daniel Ricciardo also reached SQ3 and will be pleased to start the short-form race from eighth.

Daniel Moxon