Lewis Hamilton showed his class in the media pen after the Hungarian Grand Prix, checking in on Max Verstappen after the pair made contact at Turn One.

The Mercedes man was preparing to turn in for the first corner on lap 63 when Verstappen lunged up the inside. The Red Bull driver locked up and the pair made contact, sending the rear of the Dutchman’s car airborne.

Initially, Verstappen was frustrated with his rival, claiming that the Briton moved under braking. Race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase told his driver that Red Bull were happy to leave the incident up to the stewards to assign blame.

In the media pen afterwards, Hamilton made a clear effort to touch base with Verstappen, tapping him on the shoulder to check in before the former title rivals shared a brief conversation.

Asked for his verdict on the contact, Hamilton told Sky Sports F1: “For me, it was a racing incident. He was much quicker. I turned but left enough space. He locked up and there was contact. If he was under control, he would have been passed.”

This viewpoint was shared by team principal Christian Horner, who also labelled the clash a “racing incident” and stated that “if it is anything more than that I’d be disappointed.”

Verstappen was clear in protesting his innocence. “I went for a move that was fully on,” he protested. “I didn’t brake and then we made contact, but we’ll hear what the stewards have to say.”

For Verstappen, the consequence of the contact was a two-position loss. He dropped behind the Mercedes driver and Charles Leclerc, who maximised the points on offer following a tricky weekend for Ferrari.

With Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris sealing a one-two for McLaren, Verstappen’s antics, combined with a miserable weekend for Sergio Perez, have had a disastrous effect on Red Bull’s lead in the Constructors’ Championship. Horner’s outfit are now just 51 points clear at the top.