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Pastor Maldonado has given an insight into the reasons behind his controversial outburst towards his Williams team at the United States Grand Prix.

Following a disappointing qualifying performance, which saw him drop out in Q1 while his team-mate Valterri Bottas went fastest, Maldonado hinted that his car had been tampered with by his mechanics. He is set to leave the team at the end of the year to be replaced by Felipe Massa and in a long-winded apology on Sunday night, said the stress of the current situation had got the better of him.

"Sometimes you get too stressed and you get stuck in the moment," he said. "But maybe there is something behind that after three years, and sometimes you can explode. I think I accumulated energy and exploded. It's not that I'm crazy and I start to say many things like that.

"For sure it was wrong from my side, because I respected them for three years and they respected me for three years, but I was so stressed during the weekend and after the announcement that I am leaving the team. Maybe some people changed in approach and I was taking that personally.

"I think they were not all the team, so I cannot react against all of my people because of just one person. At the end of the day it's a great relationship and I want to keep them as friends. I have some big friends here, maybe the only friends I have in Formula One, and we've had maybe the best time of my career together, but maybe also the worst part of my career together."

Maldonado, who is confident he has a drive lined up for 2014, said the whole season had been a disappointment for both team and driver.

"Sometimes you have tough days, not only racing but in your life as well," he added. "I'm living a hard time because we have suffered a lot and many things have happened with my car during the season. After the victory and after the good season we had last year we were expecting more. Not just me, we as a team were expecting more.

"When you get to the end of the season you are more stressed, but only because I want something more and want to deliver 100% but am limited by the car. Sometimes you can say something more than what you need to say.

"It has not been easy for me to leave the team, I have some great relationships and friends. For sure, there are some people in the team I don't like but maybe they don't like me as well, it's like a family. In a family you can have some differences. Now it's too late and I'm leaving the team, but I wish them all the best."

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