Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have been cleared by the stewards following their opening lap clash at the Spanish Grand Prix.
The team-mates collided while fighting for the lead on the entry to Turn 4 which eliminated both cars from the race.
Rosberg had assumed the lead from polesitter Hamilton before the reigning champion dived down the inside of the German, who suffered a slight drop in power, on the run to the corner.
The championship leader swerved to defend the position which forced Hamilton onto the grass. The Brit lost control of his car and swiped the back of Rosberg.
Hamilton and Rosberg were summoned to the stewards after the race where the clash was deemed a racing incident that warranted no further action.
The incident follows a widely publicised collision during the 2014 Belgian Grand Prix.
“I was aware of the situation, I saw Lewis coming closer, so I went for the usual racing driver action of closing the door as early as I could,” said Rosberg.
“I was making it clear I wasn’t leaving any space, so I was very surprised that he went for the gap anyway.
“The stewards decided it was a race incident, so we will accept that – we will leave it at that.”
Hamilton apologised to the team for the missed opportunity to score valuable championship points.
The three-time world champion believes an incorrect engine mode setting on Rosberg’s car had contributed to the collision.
“First of all, a huge apology to all of our team – when I stopped my heart just sank. To not deliver for them, it’s honestly indescribable how gutted I was,” said Hamilton.
“I got a good start but he (Rosberg) slipstreamed me into Turn 1.
“Then through Turn 3 he made a mistake and started in the wrong engine setting.
“We only have one setting for maximum power and he wasn’t in it, which meant he was like 180bhp down.”
While neither driver apportioned any blame for the crash, Mercedes’ non-executive chairman Niki Lauda felt Hamilton was at fault when interviewed immediately after the incident.
“It’s very simple for me,” said Lauda.
“It was a miscalculation in Lewis’s head, I blame him more than Nico.
“But for the team and for Mercedes it is unacceptable.
“Lewis was too aggressive to pass him and why should Nico give him room? He was in the lead.
“It is completely unnecessary and for me the disaster is that all Mercedes are out after two corners.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff was more measured with his assessment following a debrief with the drivers.
“We’ve spoken to both drivers – it’s not clear cut,” said Wolff.
“It’s not 100 percent pro one and zero for the other which is why I wouldn’t want to attribute any blame.
“It’s a very difficult situation and they’re both pretty upset because they know about the effort and of course they have their perspectives.
“So we need to then talk to them again, look at the pictures, look at the data and not under any circumstance allow this to happen in the future.
“The atmosphere is not good because we had a potential one-two, we lost many points for the championship.”
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