After several years of domination by Lewis Hamilton in Formula 1, the fiery Max Verstappen won his first world championship, Sunday, December 12, in Abu Dhabi. A victory acquired on the last lap of the last race of the season, after the intervention of a safety car and a contested decision by the race director. Former general manager of the Renault F1 team, Cyril Abiteboul was present in the United Arab Emirates and returns for franceinfo: sport on the outcome of the championship.
franceinfo: sport: You attended this Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the decision of which was made on the last lap, what is your first reaction after this crazy race?
Cyril Abiteboul: I don’t know if Max’s victory is definitively confirmed, but I’m not surprised that Mercedes disputes the incidents at the end of the race. It was a last round like the championship, very hotly contested. The overall advantage was for Mercedes in pure speed, performance, consistency, but the rage was in the Red Bull clan and in Max. A lot has happened, which is what is really wonderful in Formula 1, with technological and strategic duels from a distance, two amazing drivers and controversy.
That extraordinary final lap of the 2021 title race in full #AbuDhabiGP # F1 pic.twitter.com/kknTMDfpAF
– Formula 1 (@ F1) December 12, 2021
Max Verstappen wins, but it was not won after his failed start …
In pure speed, the victory went to Mercedes, with a Verstappen a little handicapped by its soft tires, a priori better for the start but less good for the strategy. In addition, his departure was not good. The Mercedes took the lead and quickly widened the gap. But Sergio Perez (Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull, editor’s note) did an amazing job of retaining Hamilton, sportingly, in a true team race. We felt a Mercedes team on the defensive, which did not react to the first virtual safety car triggered by Antonio Giovinazzi, nor to that of the accident of Nicholas Latifi. Afterwards, it is the privilege of the challenger, who has nothing to lose, to be able to attempt strategic blows.
Verstappen was able to count on the help of his team-mate, Sergio Perez, while Valtteri Bottas was too far away to lend a hand to Lewis Hamilton. Did that also play in the final result?
I think it was pretty decisive. Sergio Perez hasn’t always been there this season but he has responded in the important moments, like today, because he slowed down Lewis, even if it was not enough for Verstappen to catch the Mercedes without a car. of security.
Even though Mercedes are the constructors’ champion, I think that’s what Lewis has been lacking this year, to have the backing of a second car.
Cyril Abiteboulto franceinfo: sport
Without a safety car, do you think Lewis Hamilton would have won?
Yes very clearly. At one point we wondered if Lewis’s tires were going to hold up to the end. But in the end they resisted and his lead seemed to be enough to go to the end. Without the intervention of the safety car, the result was clearly different. And the management of the five late pilots will surely generate a lot of talk in the days to come.
Max Verstappen has often felt aggrieved by the decisions of the race director, in the end, it benefits him?
I think the FIA was in a dilemma. Normally, the usual rule is that drivers who are one lap behind can overtake the safety car. But all that takes time because then they have to go around the circuit to get back to the back of the peloton. So it can take several turns. The FIA was made between two decisions: to finish the race under a safety car, which few people wanted except Mercedes, or to allow a restart by letting Verstappen pass the five laggards. I do not have all the elements and I think there will be a lot of discussion on this subject. Red Bull complained about it the week before in Jeddah but this time it is more in their favor.
For some time now we have seen a federation that seeks to find the right balance between texts, doctrine, and what is interesting for sport.
Cyril Abiteboulto franceinfo: sport
During the first lap, Max Verstappen and Red Bull also challenged the non-opening of an investigation after Lewis Hamilton left the track …
I think the first decision was a good one. Max tries a somewhat daring maneuver, Lewis comes out and doing so he protects his position. I want to say everywhere, the ball in the center. It doesn’t seem absurd to me. The end of the race will surely give rise to more discussion. To me, today’s decisions and results are not unfair. Mercedes is the constructors’ world champion and it is deserved, and Max is driver champion, without deserving it. His qualifying lap yesterday was really boring.
In any case, I think that we must, at some point, be able to accept the decisions of the federation, of the stewards. They have a huge responsibility at such times.
With this first title for Max Verstappen, are we entering a new era of Formula 1?
It’s hard to say, but it marks a turning point. Formula 1 has been dominated by engines since 2014. Mercedes has taken advantage of a competitive advantage with incredible financial and human resources, which have allowed it to develop another advantage in the chassis. There, after several years, Red Bull managed to get back to the level. We will have to see what will happen in 2022, with the enormous change in aerodynamic regulations and the fairly marginal change in engines. Red Bull will also have to digest the departure of its engine manufacturer, Honda. It’s going to be interesting to see how they handle this and how they fare.