Timo Glock regrets Zandvoort qualifying outburst

BMW Motorsport driver Timo Glock has expressed remorse over the actions and comments that had him sent to the back of the grid and fined 3,000 EUR at Zandvoort last Sunday.

Mercedes’ Edoardo Mortara had blocked Glock during the qualifying session on Sunday, explaining that this was due to a miscommunication from his team. The German driver answered by brake-testing the Italian, calling him a ‘****ing idiot’ and, later, showing his middle finger to the Mercedes team’s mechanics in the pit lane.

Glock, who had qualified in fifth position for the grid, was excluded from qualifying for obstructing Mortara, and fined 3,000 EUR for his behaviour in the pit lane.

Glock had time to reflect on his behaviour, regretting his Sunday actions: “This was a massive overreaction. When the fog in my brain was gone I realised what I had done and what a chance I had thrown away with this behaviour,” he said.

The 35-year-old also expressed remorse for his gesture to the Mercedes mechanics: “The mechanics had absolutely no responsibility for what had happened. I can’t impute to Edoardo Mortara to have acted deliberately. After the session, the entire Mercedes squad came to me and apologised for having made a mistake in their simulation.”

Glock made his way from the back of the grid to finish seventh in the race, realising that, without his outburst, he could have had an even better result: “In the end, I harmed myself more than anybody else. If you are hopped up on adrenaline and haven’t got the opportunity to give your very best things like these can happen. Without my reaction I could have scored more points. The chance was there.”