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Crashes are pretty common in F1. Given that these cars speed around the tracks at 300 km/hr or more, crashes are almost inevitable. While most of the time, they can be genuine mistakes, this is not the case.
Amidst rivalries and clashes, feelings of dislikability or sheer anger can overcome a driver. In his pursuit to win, he might not necessarily think straight. Often this has happened to even teammates of the biggest outfits. While teammates are supposed to be the perfect driving partners, sometimes they become fiercely competitive.
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When given a championship-worthy or competitive car, every driver wants to stay ahead of even their teammate. Sometimes a driver's win might come from crashing with their teammate but surviving somehow.
Even though these situations can be taxing for an F1 team, they happen frequently. Drivers overlook the damage, pain, and loss of money that they can cause.
These F1 crashes were expensive for the team and the driver
1) Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna's big rivalry
Often touted as F1's biggest rivalry of all time, the Ayrton Senna-Alain Prost McLaren era was phenomenal. It all started when the two incredibly talented drivers partnered for the 1988-1989 season.
By then, Prost was already a two-time world champion, while Senna had some strong past seasons. 1988 was pretty straightforward as Senna somehow managed to win by three points (his first title). However, no one knew that 1989 would be an iconic season.
The Brazilian and the Frenchman shared wins between them for most of the season. However, Senna was a bit unlucky when a streak of DNFs reduced his chances of securing the championship (Prost led by 24 points before the Spanish GP). The driver knew that starting with the F1 Spanish GP. He would have no other option but to win every remaining race if he was to pick up the title.
By then, the rivalry was pretty evident between the two. While Senna, by all means, wanted to win, Prost started complaining publicly about the team. This attitude carried over to the 1989 F1 Japanese GP, the season's penultimate race.
While Senna was on pole, Prost had a good start and led the race for the most part. On Lap 47, Senna wanted to go down the chicane inside to go past Prost. The Frenchman, however, noticed this and turned to his side, causing them to collide.
Senna, who wanted to keep going, used the escape route to get back into the race. He was disqualified as rival Prost was awarded the title in 1989.
2) Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg's showdown
Camp Mercedes was divided into two when things turned bitter between former friends Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. The two have known each other since their karting days. They were once close friends and were happy partnering with each other at Mercedes F1.
However, cracks in their friendship started appearing in early 2014. During the 2014 F1 Monaco GP, Rosberg parked his car conveniently in a corner, refusing Hamilton his flying lap. Hamilton then announced to the world,
"We are not friends. We are colleagues."
The bitterness kept growing, taking a special toll on Rosberg, who lost out to his counterpart two years in a row. However, 2016 would prove to be a different story for the German driver.
Before the 2016 Spanish GP, Rosberg had managed a 43-point lead over his rival. Further, even though he did not win the pole during the Spanish GP, he still managed a great start. Hamilton, who lost his lead on turn 1 to the German, desperately wanted to regain his P1 coming out of turn three.
As a result of his reasonably aggressive driving (despite Rosberg giving no room), he spun off the track, taking the German out with him. Later on, a surprised Rosberg made it a point to call out Hamilton's move while explaining his defense:
“I saw Lewis closing in and as soon as I could I closed the door with a clear strong move to make sure he understands that there’s not going to be space there. I was very surprised that he went for it anyway.”
Things went on to become messier. Such was their rivalry that Rosberg retired from the sport after picking up his maiden F1 victory. The rivalry was the most significant factor in this decision to leave the sport.
3) Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez's duels at Force India
Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez partnered at Force India in 2017-2018. Their relationship wasn't exactly the best, and the duo weren't necessarily ideal teammates.
The Mexican and the Frenchman often collided on the tracks, unbotheringly clipping parts off each other. Despite being teammates, the two fiercely raced against one another, making contact and costing the team essential points.
Things reached a boiling point at the 2018 F1 Singapore Grand Prix. As the race began, both Perez and Ocon had a great start. The Frenchman quickly gained on Perez, and a wheel-to-wheel battle ensued. However, coming out of the turn three exits, Perez squeezed his teammate into the wall.
While the driver later apologized, claiming he did not see him, there was no denying that Perez did not want to give Ocon any space. Further, as Force India ended up pointless, Ocon tweeted:
"Damage limitation today, we were having a good race until Perez tried to kill me 2 times! Anyway he didn't manage to do so ending up P9."
A competitive car is all a driver needs to begin a war with their teammate. Over the years, some of these fights and calculative maneuvers have become iconic and remembered.
