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SUZUKA, Japan - Red Bull's Mark Webber has branded Romain Grosjean a "first-lap nutcase" and said his driving was "embarrassing" after the Lotus driver shunted him off the track during the 2012 Japanese GP.
Grosjean drove into Webber, who started second on the grid, just seconds into the race and spun his Red Bull car, costing him the chance of a podium finish.
Webber had to scramble to rejoin the race and then make a pit stop for repairs. He returned to the track and finished ninth. Grosjean, who was slapped with a one-race ban for a first-corner crash in Belgium, was given a 10-second stop/go penalty in the pits.
FIRST LAP NUTCASE
Webber suggested the Lotus driver might need another "holiday" or ban. "I haven't seen what happened at the start but the guys confirmed that it was the first-lap nutcase again - Grosjean.
"The rest of us are trying to fight for some decent results each weekend but he is trying to get to the third corner as fast as he can at every race. It makes it frustrating because a few big guys probably suffered from that and maybe he needs another holiday.
"He needs to have a look at himself. It was completely his fault. How many mistakes can you make? How many times can you make the same error? First-lap incidents, yeah it's quite embarrassing at this level for him."
SEVEN 'MORE THAN ENOUGH'
Red Bull team chief Christian Horner said Lotus might have to consider how to deal with the Grosjean's recurring problems at the first corner. "I think the most concerning thing is when it is repeat incidents. If you make mistakes, that's fine, but the key thing is to learn from them. He's hosing away points for his team, they are fighting in the Constructors' championship and I would be surprised if they were too impressed by that.
"Seven incidents in 2012 is more than enough. Mark was a victim of the action today and that cost him at least a podium."
Grosjean admitted the incident was a "stupid crash". "I was trying to avoid making any contact, but it didn't work. "We ticked all of the worst boxes again - and maybe I need to have a few whiskies to get some luck that way!"
Grosjean drove into Webber, who started second on the grid, just seconds into the race and spun his Red Bull car, costing him the chance of a podium finish.
Webber had to scramble to rejoin the race and then make a pit stop for repairs. He returned to the track and finished ninth. Grosjean, who was slapped with a one-race ban for a first-corner crash in Belgium, was given a 10-second stop/go penalty in the pits.
FIRST LAP NUTCASE
Webber suggested the Lotus driver might need another "holiday" or ban. "I haven't seen what happened at the start but the guys confirmed that it was the first-lap nutcase again - Grosjean.
"The rest of us are trying to fight for some decent results each weekend but he is trying to get to the third corner as fast as he can at every race. It makes it frustrating because a few big guys probably suffered from that and maybe he needs another holiday.
"He needs to have a look at himself. It was completely his fault. How many mistakes can you make? How many times can you make the same error? First-lap incidents, yeah it's quite embarrassing at this level for him."
SEVEN 'MORE THAN ENOUGH'
Red Bull team chief Christian Horner said Lotus might have to consider how to deal with the Grosjean's recurring problems at the first corner. "I think the most concerning thing is when it is repeat incidents. If you make mistakes, that's fine, but the key thing is to learn from them. He's hosing away points for his team, they are fighting in the Constructors' championship and I would be surprised if they were too impressed by that.
"Seven incidents in 2012 is more than enough. Mark was a victim of the action today and that cost him at least a podium."
Grosjean admitted the incident was a "stupid crash". "I was trying to avoid making any contact, but it didn't work. "We ticked all of the worst boxes again - and maybe I need to have a few whiskies to get some luck that way!"