The Monaco F1 Grand Prix was stopped less than a minute in after a freak crash, and Jeremy Clarkson had something to say about it.
This afternoon (Sunday 26 May), the Formula One race was stopped in the French Riviera-facing city when Red Bull driver Sergio Perez was red flagged after a few corners following a collision with a couple of other drivers.
The Mexican driver collided with Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg despite being the leading car of the trio.
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Magnussen tagged Perez's car, which sent him spinning, taking Hulkenberg with him in a crash that looked quite serious at first.
It happened on the hill from Sainte Devote - with the car being destroyed almost completely on impact as well.
Three of the four wheels on the car flew off, but the driver walked away unharmed, with the race having to be halted as the car hit the barrier on the famous narrow roads of Monaco.
It took all three of the drivers out of the race within seconds, as Hulkenberg was heard raging: "That was unnecessary."
It was a controversial moment as the build-up to the race raised questions about the safety of continuing to race the Monaco Grand Prix, with its small roads and tight corners a potential hazard to drivers.
And former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson was quick to share his opinion on the crash on social media.
Clarkson, an avid Formula 1 fan wrote on X: “That wasn’t K Mag’s (Kevin Magnussen's) fault in my opinion. OK. It definitely wasn’t K Mag’s fault. Even Jenson now agrees.”
However, users didn't seem to fully agree with the 64-year-old's assessment of the situation.
One posted: “Not sure. Although there was a gap I don’t know where he thought he was gonna go and end up.”
A second replied: “Perez knew he was there. He made a choice.”
While a third wrote: “Magnussen, just like in his early F1 years. I thought he would have learned.”
Magnussen himself seemed to agree with Clarkson though, telling Sky Sports after the crash: “From my point of view, I had a good part of my front on Perez's rear and when he went to the wall I got pushed to the wall and made contact with him.
“I trusted he was going to leave space for me since I was there. It's not a corner where you're braking into it, it's a bend on the straight so you have to have a car otherwise you leave the other guy no option.”
He concluded: “From my point of view, I was there and I got squeezed to the wall.”
That hasn't been the only incident though, as Scuderia Ferrari's Carlos Sainz was involved in a minor coming together with McLaren driver, Oscar Piastri - with the former suffering a puncture as a result.
Alpine drivers Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly also made contact just before the tunnel section, with Ocon forced to retire from the race afterwards.
Topics: Jeremy Clarkson, Formula 1, Sport
Joshua Nair