George Russell believes that there was no malice in Lewis Hamilton's clash with Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix. The controversial first-lap incident resulted in Verstappen crashing out heavily, whilst Hamilton was handed a 10-second penalty for his role in what happened but still went on to win the race. Russell - who became one of the directors at the Grand Prix Drivers' Assocation this year - thinks that the collision was a racing incident and has defended Hamilton's driving. "In my view, that was absolutely a racing incident," Russell told RacingNews365.com and select media. "And there are no sort of rules in that aspect, I’d say, that can say who is right or who is wrong, because it’s just one of those things. "Sometimes there is no right or wrong, it’s just a racing incident. "Lewis is one of the cleanest and fairest racers out there, always, and there was nothing malicious in the attempt because there was a clear opportunity. "Obviously the consequences were huge and I’m very glad to see Max was relatively fine following the crash. But these racing incidents are a difficult one to adjudicate on. "I don’t think there needs to be anything any clearer in that specific scenario, because it was, for me, just purely a racing incident." Russell continues to be linked to a possible move to Mercedes in 2022, where he would replace Valtteri Bottas as Hamilton's teammate. However, there is not expected to be any announcements about the Williams driver's future until after the summer break. Despite this wait, Russell is feeling relaxed. "What will be will be one way or another," the 23-year-old explained. "Everything in the long run has a way of working out for the best, and every single situation I try and take in my stride."
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