Lewis Hamilton has accepted Kimi Raikkonen's apology for their first-lap collision at the British Grand Prix and retracted his suggestion that Raikkonen drove into him on purpose.
Hamilton made a slow start from pole position and came under attack from Raikkonen for third place at Turn 3. He left space for the Ferrari on the inside of the corner, but Raikkonen locked a tyre under braking and made contact with Hamilton, pitching the Mercedes driver into a spin.
Hamilton fell to the back of the field as a result, while Raikkonen continued in fourth before being hit with a ten-second penalty at his next pit stop. Hamilton battled back to second place -- one position ahead of Raikkonen -- but after the race called Ferrari out for employing "interesting tactics" to win the race for Sebastian Vettel.
Raikkonen admitted to his mistake in the immediate aftermath of the race, and on Monday morning Hamilton changed his view on the incident; saying he was wrong to accuse Ferrari of foul play.
"Kimi said sorry and I accept it and we move on," he wrote on an Instagram post. "It was a racing incident and nothing more. Sometimes we say dumb s--- and we learn from it."
On Sunday evening he made a separate post on Instagram where he explained why he had shirked an interview with former F1 racer Martin Brundle immediately after the race.
"I lost nearly 3KG trying to get back to the top today for you and my team," Hamilton wrote. "I barely had any energy at the end to stand, let alone talk. If you can't understand and appreciate, then I fully understand.
"However, [this] was nothing to with anger, literally just exhausted both physically and emotionally. Thanks to everyone for the incredible support this weekend, we win and lose together. Onwards and upwards."
On Monday morning he followed that post up with another message to his fans.
"Thank you for loving me for being me with all my flaws," he said. "I know I'm not perfect. Accepting who you are and loving yourself are so important. Go be great today and be you and give zero f---s to what anybody thinks."