Valtteri Bottas has been given a reprimand for his collision with Romain Grosjean during practice.

The pair collided at turn 11 towards the end of the second practice session. Bottas was trying to overtake the Haas on this inside when they made contact.

“I thought he would see me coming because he was at some point trying to cover the line,” said Bottas. “So I thought he was aware I was there but maybe he didn’t look at the mirror before turning him. I expected him to see me and I saw the gap decreasing and there was no escape.”

The Mercedes driver admitted the collision was his fault when he and Grosjean spoke to the stewards.

“Valtteri accepted responsibility for the collision and acknowledged that it was a failed attempt at an overtake which resulted in the collision,” they noted.

“Obviously my apologies, but there was no nowhere for me to disappear,” Bottas added. “I went for the overtake and that was it.”

This is Bottas’s first reprimand of the season. He is already due to start this weekend’s race from the back of the grid due to a power unit parts change.

This article will be updated.

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2019 F1 season