Montoya unrepentant over Schumacher clash

The world champion complained about his racing style, but the Colombian shrugged off his comments saying their coming together was "a racing accident".

The duo almost got too close for comfort in Brazil a month ago when Montoya muscled past to take the lead. This time Montoya saw his dreams of a second successive podium finish go up in smoke when he retired with hydraulic problems. But before that there was another controversial episode as he refused to give an inch to Schumacher and the duo collided on lap 16.

"I defended as best as I could, but we both went wide. It was a racing incident, " he said. "I am racing to win not to let people by. It's not a case of him saying, 'I'm Michael, let me by'."

Schumacher waved his fist in frustration at the BMW-Williams driver as Rubens Barrichello sliced through into the lead.

Montoya returned to the track behind Schumacher in seventh place and had worked his way up to fifth on lap 41 when the hydraulics failed.

"It is a shame because I knew we were fast today," he said. "I made a great start and I felt the car was getting better and better. We lost hydraulic pressure which led to losing the gears and everything really. I'd gone off two corners before and I thought that might cause problems."

McLaren test driver Alexander Wurz has defended Montoya's controversial move on Schumacher. While Schumacher says Montoya's move was "silly", the Colombian put it down as a racing incident. But the former Benetton racer, who was working for ITV television, said: " For Michael to say Montoya would not have made it is a bit strange because he would not have made the corner either."