Defending HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship title winner Fabrizio Giovanardi has apologised to Johnny Herbert for the criticism he leveled at the former F1 driver following the penultimate rounds of the season.

Giovanardi hit out at Herbert for 'unprofessional driving' following the Rockingham weekend, after contact between the pair in the final race damaged Giovanardi's Vectra and left him outside the points.

Coming at a crucial point in the season, the failure to score saw Giovanardi drop to 13 points behind Colin Turkington in the championship chase, but the Italian admitted that his criticism of Herbert had come in the heat of the moment.

“I wish I had not said this and I apologise for my over-reaction,” he told the official series website btcc.net. “It was straight after three races and it was hard a day because I'd lost points to Turkington. This made me really upset.

“At that moment I was fired up because he wasn't involved in the fight at the front, but I'm sure he is a good guy.”