MUGELLO, Sept 13 — The Tuscan Grand Prix was paused on the opening lap today when a safety car was deployed following a multiple collision.

The crash resulted in Max Verstappen of Red Bull flying off into the gravel after a tangle with several midfield runners.

He was taken out along with last weekend’s Monza victor Pierre Gasly, the first Frenchman to win a Grand Prix since 1996.

Ferrari’s departing four-time champion Sebastian Vettel was also involved in the collision and had to pit for repairs along with Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen.

The crash appeared to be caused by a collision between Gasly of Alpha Tauri and fellow-Frenchman Romain Grosjean of Haas while Carlos Sainz of McLaren also spun.

Valtteri Bottas took the lead ahead of his Mercedes team-mate and series leader Lewis Hamilton at the start while Verstappen seemed to be bogged down with a lack of power following a late pre-race problem with power-unit software problems that were repaired on the grid. — AFP