Racing Point Force India Team Principal Otmaz Szafnauer has said that they will reinstate team orders for the rest of the season for their drivers.

This follows the opening lap incident between Estaban Ocon and Sergio Perez. The two made contact with each other at Turn 3 when Ocon tried to pass Perez around the outside. Perez could be seen jinking right just as Ocon came alongside him which put Ocon into the wall and out of the race. The collision subsequently brought out the safety car.

Ocon was unhurt but was visibly angry feeling that there was a decent chance at a points haul for the team.

“It’s a huge disappointment to be out of the race early when we had such strong pace. The car felt great this weekend and we knew a strong result was possible, but instead we’re leaving Singapore with zero points,” said Ocon.

“I am not going to analyse what happened at the start. All I will say is that I got off the line well and I saw an opportunity to go past Sergio.

“I had good grip on the outside, but then I felt a hit and I was in the wall.”

Perez rued the lost points on the day but maintained his innocence on the Ocon incident.

“On lap one I was coming out of turn three, picking up the power and all of a sudden I felt a hit. I didn’t know who it was and then the team told me it was Esteban,” said Perez.

After the race Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer was fuming at his drivers and speaking to Sky Sports F1 said that they will reinstate team orders or the rules of engagement they had last year.

“An extremely disappointing race. It’s unacceptable for teammates to hit each other and it has cost us dearly,” he said.

“They didn’t leave each other enough room and the contact put Esteban into the wall. We will therefore reinstate the rules of engagement we operated last year after similar incidents, which means they cannot race each other.

“This disastrous race is all the more frustrating when you consider the speed we showed in qualifying and the opportunity that has passed us by.

“These painful lows are part of racing and it’s fair to say that there are very few positives to take from tonight apart from the car pace.

“We will have some discussions behind closed doors and will learn from what happened so that we can become stronger as a team.”