Lewis Hamilton accused Fernando Alonso of brake testing him during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, whilst approaching Turn 5.
Whilst running in 12th place, Hamilton found himself behind directly behind Alonso when the Spaniard exited the pits.
Hamilton was right on the gearbox of his old McLaren teammate when the swept through Turn 4, before Alonso suddenly slowed down.
The seven-time World Champion was forced to slow down and immediately complained about Alonso’s antics over the radio, which would’ve resulted in a collision had he not reduced his own speed.
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“He just brake tested me,” complained Hamilton over the radio, “like way before the braking zone.”
Hamilton did end up getting past Alonso thanks to the use of DRS; however, he later fell back behind the two-time World Champion.
After the race, the incident – which was noted by the stewards – was analysed by ex-F1 driver and Sky Sports F1 pundit Anthony Davidson, who noticed that the incident occurred right before the DRS detection line.
Alonso was clearly keen to gain DRS, something he would’ve only received if he was behind the Mercedes driver.
Given that the 42-year-old finished ahead of Hamilton, the incident ended up having very little impact on the race, as the seven-time World Champion simply struggled to make progress from his P11 starting position.
Thankfully for Hamilton, George Russell’s P3 was enough to secure the Silver Arrows second in the Constructors’ Championship but just by three points over Ferrari.
Alonso ended up finishing the race in seventh, which was enough for the veteran to clinch fourth in the Drivers’ Championship, one-place behind Hamilton.
Despite Hamilton having ended the season ahead of Alonso in the standings, it’s the latter who’s arguably had the better season.
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The Spaniard has taken Aston Martin to new heights in 2023, with him having rewarded the Silverstone-based side for their efforts by securing eight podiums.
Remarkably, this is the same number that Hamilton and Russell achieved in 2023 combined, further highlighting just how strong a season Alonso has had.
He’ll be hoping that Aston Martin can make some progress over the winter so that he can take the fight to Red Bull in 2024 and try to claim a third title.