Raikkonen was put into a spin by his teammate Giovinazzi at the start of the event while the two cars battled Fernando Alonso’s Alpine.
However, the incident was not followed up by FIA commissioners and Vasseur said his drivers discussed it after the checkered flag and agreed that it was a racing incident.
Giovinazzi finished the sprint in 13th place, while Raikkonen moved back to 18th.
However, the Finn will start the race from the pit lane on Sunday after the team changed the specification of his rear wing to get better straight speed and allow him to overtake in the main race.
Such a Parc-Ferme change automatically triggers a pit lane start.
“I think it was more of a misunderstanding,” Vasseur told Motorsport.com about the accident. “Because they passed Alonso, one on the left, one on the right.
“I think Kimi didn’t expect Antonio to be at the top. It’s what it is. They had a good time and are very relaxed at the end of the day. They had a very open and nice discussion.
“That’s a shame because Antonio’s pace was good. He damaged the car a little, but the pace was good. If we’d had the two cars in 12th and 13th, we could have finished them in the points, but let’s see. We still have a good opportunity. “
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21, Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo Racing C41, Nicholas Latifi, Williams FW43B, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W12 and the rest of the field
Photo by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images
Giovinazzi said he was not concerned that a collision with his teammate could cause problems with his team once he gets back to the garage.
“I wasn’t worried, I knew there was nothing to do at that moment,” he told Motorsport.com.
“We were three cars on the straight and when I braked Kimi couldn’t see me inside, so I had no place to avoid him.
“I’m P13 in the race, so we made up a position. The pace isn’t that bad, so we’ll have to see what the best strategy is.”
