Antonio Felix da Costa branded Oliver Rowland “a sore loser” because the pair collided in the course of the first London E-Prix this weekend which eradicated the Porsche Formulation E driver.
Da Costa and Rowland have been battling for place within the early phases of Saturday’s race on the London ExCeL, with the Portuguese racer launching up the within into Flip 19 on lap six to maneuver as much as fifth place.
Rowland remained partially alongside and was on the within line into the next nook earlier than the pair made contact, with da Costa breaking his suspension within the collision.
Following the incident, da Costa branded Rowland “a sore loser” over the radio and acknowledged post-race that the Nissan driver is overly aggressive in wheel-to-wheel racing.
“I did a traditional overtake on somebody with out pushing anybody into the wall and he clearly did not do the identical factor,” stated da Costa.
“In two corners we have now precisely make an overtake and the way to not make an overtake.
“He’s [a sore loser], as a result of he is making these races the place he is coming ahead and going by individuals and he is clearly been having fun with that however typically it is advisable lose a place. Typically you’re overtaken as effectively, it occurs and it was not his nook.
Oliver Rowland, Nissan Formulation E Staff, Nissan e-4ORCE 04
Photograph by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Photographs
“He is all the time the one pushing individuals within the wall aggressively. Possibly I ought to blame myself for realizing who I am going up in opposition to.”
Rowland was capable of rejoin in the back of the sphere and was categorised fifteenth having been handed a five-second penalty for the collision.
The incident ended any slim likelihood Rowland and da Costa had of the drivers’ championship this weekend, the Briton returning to the all-electric championship having missed the final spherical in Portland attributable to sickness.
“I believe typically they [the stewards] look an excessive amount of on the consequence,” stated Rowland.
“We have been each racing exhausting and truly the incident was extra dictated by the truth that the steering wheel obtained taken out of my arms.
“He’d squeezed me out of Flip 19, I stood my floor into Flip 20, we made contact, it was only a bit unlucky how the automobiles related, to be sincere. It’s what it’s, you win some, you lose some.”