"Sebastian Vettel won't contact me because he doesn't have my phone number": When Lewis Hamilton was furious with the 4x F1 champion

During the 2017 European Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was furious with Sebastian Vettel following their on-track collision at Baku. The level of their rivalry escalated to such an extent that Hamilton stated Vettel would not call him because the latter did not have his number, signifying their lack of interest in personal contact.

Hamilton and Vettel had been title rivals since 2010, and their battle continued until 2020. However, their fight for supremacy intensified in the mid-2010s, when Hamilton moved to Mercedes, and Vettel went to Ferrari.

The story continued in 2017, when Hamilton and Vettel were title rivals again. Fast forward to Azerbaijan, the eighth race of the season, and they were at loggerheads once again. With three wins each, the duo was all in for the race win once again.

However, things did not work out smoothly for the duo as Vettel alleged that Hamilton brake-tested him when they were racing behind the safety car. In return, Vettel right-swerved his car into Hamilton's.

The actions left both drivers furious as they had different versions to justify themselves. Amid this, Hamilton brought up how competitive they were, as they did not have any personal contacts. Citing this, the then-Mercedes driver said, via Sky Sports:

"Vettel won't contact me because he doesn't have my phone number. For my part, I'll just talk on the track, we'll chat on the circuits, and I'll win the World Championship the right way."

Neither Lewis Hamilton nor Sebastian Vettel was able to win the 2017 European GP at Baku, Azerbaijan. Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull claimed the victory, ahead of Valtteri Bottas of Mercedes and Lance Stroll of Williams.

---

How did Lewis Hamilton react to the swerve by Sebastian Vettel?

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Sebastian Vettel of Germany drive the (5) Scuderia Ferrari. Source: Getty

Lewis Hamilton had a stern criticism for Sebastian Vettel after the then-Ferrari driver swerved at him during the 2017 Baku race. Speaking to the media after the race, he said, via The Guardian:

"There are a lot of kids who adore us, and seeing a multiple-time world champion do that on TV... You learn not to do these things in karts. I hope the kids don't see these things in GP2 or GP3 either and believe it's the right thing to do.

"Everyone has their opinion, but I hope young drivers don't think that's how racing is done, because it's not true. Vettel's response isn't the right one, whatever the situation. We're world champions, the best drivers on the planet."

Lewis Hamilton went on to win the championship that season and claimed his fourth F1 title. With this, he matched Vettel in the number of titles, as they jumped in again for the title supremacy in 2018.