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Bird: Lynn left me no room in race-ending FE crash

New Jaguar signing Sam Bird feels Mahindra’s Alex Lynn left him no room in the incident that put both drivers out of Formula E’s season-opening Diriyah E-Prix.

Watch: Jaguar Racing | Season 7 Round 1 | Diriyah E-Prix Highlights

Bird and Lynn were fighting for sixth position in the early stages of the Riyadh race when the Jaguar driver made a lunge going into the Turn 1 left-hander, only for Lynn to block him into the inside wall.

Lynn spun backwards into the barriers following their initial contact and was then collected again by Bird's Jaguar, with both cars sustaining heavy damage in the incident. Lynn was forced to park his Mahindra a few corners later, necessitating a safety car, while Bird also retired later in the race after having a new nose fitted in the pits.

The stewards deemed Lynn responsible for the incident and handed him a three-place grid penalty for Saturday’s second race, stating the 27-year-old changed direction twice and “didn’t leave the car on the inside enough space” to complete the move.

Asked what he made of Lynn’s defence, Bird told Motorsport.com: “Of course he didn’t [leave enough room], that’s why we crashed. 

“For me, the move was done. I’ve seen many people overtake there before. You just need somebody that’s going to comply and Alex didn’t want to comply.

“The stewards have seen it the same way as me. So I don’t need to really go on about it too much. I just need to look at the positives. We were quite quick today. And we move on.”

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Asked how he saw the crash from his point of view, Lynn told Motorsport.com: “No, not much to say really. Was a shame to end like that.”

Pressed further if he agreed with Bird’s assessment that he didn’t leave him enough room, Lynn added: “No, not from my side. I’m done with it. I’m done with the incident and looking forward to tomorrow.”

Bird’s teammate Mitch Evans finished on the podium after completing a late pass on the Audi of Rene Rast, while Alexander Sims finished seventh in the other Mahindra.

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