Sebastian Vettel says he has no idea what caused his RB8 to cut out in Valencia on Sunday but reckons the Safety Car may have played a role.
The Red Bull racer had been leading the grand prix with a comfortable 20 second margin over Romain Grosjean when the Safety Car came out on lap 31 due to debris on the track.
With the field bunched up, it was up to Vettel to once again etch out a lead. However, instead of doing that, the reigning World Champ slowed down before stopping out on track.
Climbing out of his stricken RB8, it was evident to anyone watching that Vettel was very unhappy.
"We don't know what happened yet," Vettel told the BBC.
"I lost drive and then the engine stalled the switched off.
"We don't know what the problem is. Maybe it was the same problem Mark had on Friday.
"The Safety Car was not ideal for us and it might be that the retirement is in some regards down to the safety car.
"So yeah, it's a shame."
Vettel's first DNF of the season means the German is now fourth in the standings on 85 points, 26 behind European Grand Prix winner Fernando Alonso.
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