Juncadella just a passenger in dramatic Macau GP clash
Daniel Juncadella says there was nothing he could have done to avoid the first lap clash with Antonio Giovinazzi that wrecked his Macau Grand Prix hopes.
Crash
Jun Qian
The Spaniard and his Italian rival were battling for second place on the exit of Lisboa on the first lap when they touched wheels.
Juncadella was spun across and into the barriers before being collected by a number of rivals in an accident that brought out the safety car.
“I left him room into Lisboa and I exited the corner really close to the wall,” Juncadella told Motorsport.com. “And then it all happened really quick.
“It felt like a huge spin, which was obviously not caused by too much power because I was exiting in second gear and was very low on revs.
“I knew Antonio was not next to me, because I could see him on the exit after leaving him room, and I thought I would be okay for the next corner. But then I was just turned around.”
Not deliberate
Although Giovinazzi was able to continue and eventually went on to win, he was handed a 20-second penalty, in lieu of a drive-through punishment, for his part in the Juncadella crash.
That dropped him to 10th.
When asked whether he thought Giovinazzi's punishment was fair, Juncadella said: “I don't think he did it on purpose, as I rate him as an intelligent driver. But when you destroy another driver's race that is how it is.”
Doubtful for main race
Juncadella fears that his Macau weekend is now over, after the team suspected that damage to his car cannot be repaired for Sunday's feature race.
“I think the tub is cracked, so here at Macau it would be too risky to race,” he said. “It is just really unfortunate.
“But I think I have showed this weekend what I wanted to show for myself and for everybody, and I am quite happy with that.
“Now it is tough because emotions are high and I wanted to get a chance tomorrow, but I am happy where I am at the moment in my career.”
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