The first example of this was seen in 1989 when Alain Prost hit Ayrton Senna on the first lap of the final race at Suzuka. While Senna carried on and won the race, he was disqualified for cutting the chicane and thus handing the championship to Prost. Twelve months later, at the same venue, Senna took redemption by deliberately crashing into Prost to win his first F1 championship.

While F1 took note of the incident, little was done to avoid further incidents, and thus, in 1994, things repeated with Michael Schumacher turning in on Damon Hill to clinch the championship by one point. Schumacher repeated this attempt on Jacques Villeneuve three years later, only to be disqualified from the championship for deliberately hitting another driver. These incidents forced then FIA president Max Mosley to intervene and set up rules to stop drivers from taking out each other. But two decades since the Schumacher incident, no driver has tried to put the rules to the test, barring the 2016 season when tensions were running high between teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, leading to multiple collisions through the season. But looking at the 2021 season, it seems like the rule will be finally implemented. The heated battle between Hamilton and Max Verstappen is through the roof, with the duo colliding on two occasions in the 2021 season. 

Coming into the 2021 season, things looked heated as Red Bull finally fielded a competitive car that is considered the best on the grid. On the other hand, affected by the recent rules change, Mercedes started on the backfoot during pre-season testing. With protagonists from both teams gunning to clinch the title, things began to heat up from the first race in Bahrain, where the Mercedes and Hamilton won the race after a close wheel to wheel battle with Verstappen. Determined to win the title, Verstappen and Red Bull adopted every tactic in the book to win the next round in Italy and swing the championship in their favour.

With Verstappen aiming for his maiden title and Lewis for his eighth, both drivers gave their 100 percent on the track, resulting in fantastic wheel-to-wheel racing in Bahrain, Imola, Portimao, Barcelona and France that was missing from F1 for over a decade. This close wheel to wheel racing has resulted in the championship swinging both ways, race after race. During the initial phase of the championship, both drivers raced with mutual respect. But just before the summer break, during round 10 of the championship at Silverstone, the rivalry took an ugly turn. Verstappen and Hamilton collided at the Corpse corner on the first lap of the race, resulting in a 51G crash that saw Verstappen spinning into the tyre barrier. This was the spark that ignited it all.

Following the crash, Lewis was handed a 10-sec time penalty which in no way affected the result of the race. In the end, Lewis won his eighth British GP and celebrated in style. This trigged Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who accused Hamilton of ‘dirty racing’. While the drivers refused to engage in a war of words, the team principals were going at each other. F1 went for its summer break, with Lewis leading the championship by just six points.

Coming back from the summer break, Verstappen won back to back at the Spa-Franco champs and at his home track in the Netherlands.

Just when the war of words had started to settle down and the championship had swung in Red Bull and Verstappen’s favour, the two championship rivals collided on lap 26 of the Italian GP at Monza. Frustrated by an 11.1-second pit stop which put him directly into Hamilton’s path, Verstappen was pushing hard on a fresh set of hard tyres. On lap 26, Hamilton pitted for a new set of tyres and caught McLaren’s Lando Norris and Verstappen at the pit exit. After letting Norris pass, Hamilton stuck to the racing line into the Variante chicane. Seizing the opportunity, Verstappen attacked to the outside of Hamilton. Not yielding, both drivers stuck to their racing lines and collided. The collision saw Verstappen’s car bounce off the sausage kerbs and pitched onto Hamilton’s car, clipping the rear wing and roll hoop of the Mercedes before landing heavily onto the Halo. Both the cars got beached in the gravel with one on top of the other.

A disgruntled Verstappen got off the car and walked away, blaming Hamilton for the crash. Talking post-race, Verstappen complained, “He kept on squeezing me to the left. I expected him to give me space going into turn 2, but he left me without enough road.” Reacting to it, Hamilton, said, “I left him a car’s width going into the first corner and I was ahead going into the corner. The next thing I know, Max was over me. He obviously knew at that point he wasn’t going to make the corner and drove into me.”

After the race, the stewards reviewed the incident and handed Verstappen a three-place grid drop for the Russian GP. The stewards found that Verstappen was never in front of Hamilton and hence was predominantly to blame for the collision. Reacting to the penalty, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff accused Verstappen of a tactical foul.

Verstappen will be ready for redemption at the Russian GP. Eager to bounce back from his three-place grid penalty and win at the Sochi Autodromo and break Mercedes dominance at a circuit that suits the Mercedes car the best. While the blame game continues, F1 pundits predict that the two title rivals will clash again before the end of the championship. With eight rounds left in the championship, Verstappen leads Hamilton by just five points. It’s all to play for in the championship, with either driver giving it their 100 percent.

With a three-place grid penalty to serve at a track that does not favour the Red Bull Car, will the Milton Keynes-based team opt to take engine penalty and push during the race with a new engine, or will they postpone the new engine for another race? Will Verstappen adopt a more polite approach towards his driving? Will the teams and drivers race fair with mutual respect? We have to wait and watch. But for the fans, this championship is an exciting one that will go down to the wire and enter the record books as the most entertaining season in the recent past. (TT)

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ZC Rubber is showcasing an extensive selection of industrial and off-the-road tyre solutions at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2026 trade show, being held from 3 to 7 March 2026 in Las Vegas. Attendees can visit the company at booth #N11041 in the North Hall to explore products from its key brands, including WESTLAKE, TIANLI, ARISUN and YONGGU. These offerings are specifically engineered to withstand the rigorous demands of sectors such as construction, agriculture, forestry and material handling.

The display features a comprehensive range of products, such as radial OTR tyres, agricultural tyres, forest tyres, material handling tyres and rubber tracks. Each product is designed to deliver durability, superior traction and operational efficiency in challenging work environments. The exhibition provides an important platform for ZC Rubber to engage with industry professionals, highlight its technological advancements and demonstrate its commitment to supporting global construction and industrial sectors with reliable, high-performance solutions.

Visitors can explore the lineup and speak with the team to learn how these tyre solutions can enhance productivity across a wide variety of applications.

Benjamin Lou, Global OTR Director, ZC Rubber, said, “CONEXPO brings together the people and machines that keep the world building, and it’s a great place for us to connect with customers face-to-face. With brands like WESTLAKE, TIANLI, ARISUN and YONGGU under one roof, we’re able to offer a true one-stop tyre solution across construction, agriculture, forestry and material handling. Our goal is simple – help customers find the right tyre for every job, all in one place.”

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Bridgestone Corporation has announced a significant advancement in environmental research with the development of an industry-first vehicle collection method for tyre and road wear particles (TRWP) specifically from truck and bus tyres. This innovation is designed to enhance scientific understanding of how such particles may interact with the environment. Tyre and road wear particles are generated through the friction between a tyre’s tread and the road surface – a process essential for vehicle safety and comfort – and consist of a combination of worn tyre material and fragments of road pavement. The newly developed collection method for trucks and buses was also showcased at the Tire Technology Expo 2026, held from 3 to 5 March in Hannover, Germany.

The company had previously introduced a collection method for passenger car tyres in 2025 and has since been working to improve its efficiency. Applying insights gained from that earlier development, particularly regarding how particles are generated and dispersed, Bridgestone created a proprietary system tailored to the larger scale of truck and bus tyres. To ensure the accuracy of the collected samples, the company used a dedicated proving ground designed to replicate real-world driving conditions. Before each test, the track was meticulously cleaned to prevent contamination from pre-existing debris.

For the collection process, Bridgestone engineered suction devices and intake mechanisms compatible with larger tyres. A sturdy aluminium frame was used to construct the tyre cover, ensuring durability against strong winds during operation. Following controlled driving sessions, particles that remained both on the track surface and inside the tyre cover were gathered for analysis.

This effort is part of a broader commitment to investigate the physical and chemical characteristics of tyre wear particles and their potential environmental effects. Bridgestone participates in the Tire Industry Project (TIP) facilitated by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and collaborates with external research organisations and corporate partners. With the ability to collect samples from both passenger vehicles and heavy-duty trucks and buses, the company aims to accelerate research, share findings widely and support efforts to reduce particle generation.

Alongside this research, Bridgestone is advancing several complementary initiatives. These include developing longer-lasting tyres with improved wear resistance, offering solutions that help customers lower total operating costs and working to minimise environmental impact throughout the product lifecycle.

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UTAC, a prominent player in the automotive testing, inspection and certification sector, is significantly broadening its footprint in China. The company has unveiled plans for a cutting-edge proving ground in Huainan, situated in the central province of Anhui. This ambitious project is being developed through a collaboration with the Huainan City Government and is set to become the primary strategic hub for the UTAC Group’s operations within the country. By establishing this facility, UTAC aims to bolster the mobility industry with top-tier testing capabilities and specialised knowledge.

The new site will enable UTAC’s team of specialists to offer homologation and testing services that align with the most current international benchmarks and regulatory standards. This initiative is a direct continuation of the group’s overarching goal to foster a mobility landscape that is both safer and more environmentally friendly. The Huainan facility is designed to be comprehensive, featuring a variety of specialised tracks for vehicle testing, along with a technology park that includes rentable workshops and office spaces. It will also house a dedicated conference and exhibition centre and purpose-built laboratories outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment. These labs will be specifically geared towards testing the latest advancements in new energy vehicles.

Anhui province itself provides a rich environment for such an investment. Home to 70 million people, it hosts a dense and extensive mobility ecosystem. Major automotive manufacturers like BYD, Changan, Chery, JAC, NIO and Volkswagen, together with their extensive supply networks, are deeply embedded in the region. The province’s manufacturing prowess is underscored by its production of roughly 3.7 million vehicles in 2023, a figure that positions Anhui as China’s leader in overall vehicle manufacturing, new-energy vehicle production and vehicle exports. Consequently, the new proving ground in Huainan is poised to become a vital strategic component for UTAC, solidifying its presence in this central hub of the Chinese mobility industry.

Connor McCormack, CEO, UTAC, said, " We are extremely proud of our partnership with the city of Huainan, which is undergoing a significant transformation to support the future of the automotive industry. UTAC is delighted to contribute to this transformation and to bring our 100 years of specialist expertise, along with the European standards we have helped shape and validate, to China’s vital automotive sector.”

Mayor Zhang Zhiqiang of Huainan City said, “This represents a significant milestone in Huainan's efforts to accelerate the development of its intelligent connected vehicle industry. It is of great importance in bridging the critical gap in the regional automotive sector’s industrial chain of ‘testing-production-export' and establishing a specialised vehicle testing and certification platform with international recognition. The successful cooperation on this project will undoubtedly advance the high-end and intelligent transformation of the regional automotive industry, providing strong impetus for Anhui Province's efforts to foster a new energy vehicle industrial cluster with international competitiveness.”

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DUNLOP Tyre Europe GmbH (DUNLOP) is preparing to introduce its latest innovation, the BLUE RESPONSE TG, an all-new summer tyre engineered to advance safety, efficiency and driving dynamics. This model marks a significant milestone as the first DUNLOP summer tyre developed by Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) and will make its official debut this weekend at the Circuito de Sevilla in Spain. The 4.2-kilometre track, known for its 16 corners and lengthy 822-metre straight, provides a demanding environment ideal for showcasing the tyre’s capabilities. Under the theme ‘the art of perfect balance’, the BLUE RESPONSE TG will undergo rigorous evaluation on the Spanish circuit to demonstrate its well-rounded performance.

A dynamic launch event has been arranged to give 120 attendees, including customers, journalists and influencers, a firsthand look at the tyre’s abilities across multiple conditions. Participants will engage in slalom exercises on both dry and wet surfaces, while braking and obstacle avoidance drills will highlight stopping power and responsiveness. Handling assessments will allow for direct comparison with rival products, focusing on cornering stability and steering accuracy. Additional tests will examine comfort and noise levels, emphasising rolling smoothness and sound reduction, as well as efficiency, showcasing lower rolling resistance and reduced fuel consumption. The experience will be complemented by guided road drives and track laps, offering a thorough perspective on the tyre’s dynamic qualities.

To illustrate the versatility of the BLUE RESPONSE TG, the test fleet includes a diverse selection of modern vehicles. Among them are the Audi e-tron, BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz EQE, Mercedes-Benz G-Class, Toyota GR Yaris and Nissan GT-R R35, spanning from premium electric cars to high-performance sports machines. Developed specifically for contemporary vehicle platforms, the tyre integrates an advanced tread design, a novel rubber compound and a reinforced construction. These elements work together to deliver precise handling, short braking distances, strong wet grip and low rolling resistance, catering to drivers seeking safety, comfort and stability in both routine travel and more demanding scenarios.

Markus Bögner, President and Managing Director, DUNLOP Tyre Europe, said, “This is our first DUNLOP event since the acquisition, which is precisely why the launch of our summer tyre is so important to us. Direct interaction with customers and the media here on site is crucial for us, as it is the only way we can hear their perspectives and continue to develop in a targeted manner.”

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