George Russell was furious with Valtteri Bottas after crashing out of an action-packed Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

The Wisbech F1 star tangled with the Finn on lap 34 as the pair raced at 200mph down towards the first corner of the Imola track.

Russell, going round the outside, dropped a wheel on the damp grass causing him to lose control of his Williams with the pair ending up in the wall and out of the race.

The 23-year-old former Wisbech Grammar pupil, part of the Mercedes junior academy, was livid with Bottas and screamed his exasperation over the radio before marching over to confront his rival.

He leaned into the car and hit the Finn on his helmet with Bottas gesticulating back at the Williams driver.

The incident caused the race to be red lagged as marshals cleared the wreckage from the track.

And for Stevenage's Lewis Hamilton it came at a the most opportune moment.

He had just slipped from second to ninth when the flashpoint occurred, running off the road at turn seven and damaging his front wing.

He stopped for repairs and when the race was restarted he set about clawing back the deficit.

He passed five drivers in 21 sensational laps, taking the McLaren of Lando Norris around the outside of the first corner with three laps remaining to cross the line in second.

Max Verstappen took the win after a brilliant start in the wet conditions took him from third to first, eventually finishing 22 seconds clear of Hamilton.

Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari ahead of team-mate Carlos Sainz.

The early stages of the race had already seen the safety car deployed as the drivers battled the aftermath of a downpour in the hour leading up to the start.

Williams' bad day had already started poorly with Nicholas Latifi losing control in the tricky conditions and moments later, Mick Schumacher also crashed, this time on the pit straight.

The racing resumed on lap seven, and Verstappen quickly established a five-second lead over Hamilton.

When the leading pair changed over to slick tyres on lap 27, the gap grew from two seconds to five before the the real drama began.

Hamilton set the fastest lap to claim a bonus point, the one he now leads Verstappen by in the Championship after two races.

The Algarve International Circuit hosts round three of the season, the Portuguese Grand Prix.