Lotus Renault GP boss Eric Boullier says "the matter is closed" after Vitaly Petrov apologized for having been critical of his team's performance after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The Russian launched an attack on the team on Russian television after the race, but wrote a letter to Renault staff on Friday to apologize for his comments, saying they have been "inappropriate" and "unnecessary." Boullier said the outburst was simply an incident that showed Petrov is human.
"The interview was made minutes after Vitaly jumped out of the car last Sunday," said Boullier. "The race was tough – he was upset not to have scored points, he was exhausted. Drivers are not robots, they're human beings. Also, like every driver, Vitaly is a competitor. Had he been on the podium in Abu Dhabi, he would have complained about not winning the race.
"We take this incident as exactly this – an incident. Vitaly has apologized to the team and sent an email to all the staff at Enstone [UK]. As far as we are concerned, the matter is closed."