Michael Schumacher said he was not angry with his Mercedes pit crew after having to retire from the Chinese Grand Prix, having been in the fight for his first victory since returning to Formula 1.
The Mercedes driver was forced to stop his car on lap 15 after one of his mechanics failed to secure the right front tyre properly during his pit stop. Schumacher had run in second position behind teammate Nico Rosberg in the early stages.
The seven-time champion was upbeat after stopping, however, claiming that the positive was that his team has found the soft spot to make the tires work properly, after having struggled with them in the first two races.
"I noticed in Turn 3 that something was wrong with the front right tire," Schumacher told Britain's BBC. "Already by Turn 6 there was quite a bit of smoke and damage and I thought it was better to stop before I did some serious damage to the car.
"I don't have any hard feelings. I feel a bit sorry for one of my boys that I guess he feels responsible, but it's part of the game.
"We were looking strong. We told you guys that we were having too much wear in Australia and we were not having enough wear in Malaysia, so there must have been a middle way. It looks like we found the way."