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Karthikeyan wants end to spat

Image: Narain Karthikeyan: Wants an end to his row with Vettel

Narain Karthikeyan says he and World Champion Sebastian Vettel should move on from their Malaysian GP war of words "in a mature way".

HRT driver admits he's been stunned by coverage of Vettel war of words

Narain Karthikeyan admits he has been "amazed" by the reaction to his spat with Sebastian Vettel following their collision in the Malaysian Grand Prix - and is now calling on all sides to draw a line under the incident. In an interview with the Indian media on Wednesday, Karthikeyan reacted angrily to the World Champion publicly labelling him an "idiot" in the wake of their clash last Sunday's race when they touched while Vettel was in the process of lapping the HRT driver. Karthikeyan described the remarks as "really shameful" and "unprofessional" given Vettel's status in F1, but has now sought to calm the media storm their respective comments have created in recent days. "I am amazed by the reaction in the media, but I think everyone has to calm down now," the Indian driver told Autosport. "I think we have to deal with it in a mature way and forget about it." The former Jordan driver isn't however planning to meet with Vettel at the next race in China, insisting they just need to focus on their respective jobs rather than look back. "What's the point?" Karthikeyan asked. "He has done his bit, and I have done my bit. We just have to respect each other. He will be running at the front, and we are not going to run at the front. Both of us have to get on with our job." Although Karthikeyan was adjudged to have been the guilty party in the tangle by the Race Stewards, who handed him a 20-second time penalty following the race, the Indian remains adamant it was a racing incident and Vettel shouldn't have lambasted him in the way he did. "There are five other World Champions on the grid who have been through a lot, and been through bad times, but none of them reacted like that," he said. "In my opinion it was a racing incident."

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