![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() In Abu Dhabi, a restart was still possible – if admittedly not a certainty – from the moment Latifi crashed. That would have given more time to clear the car away and clean the track, while allowing teams and drivers to change tyres and make repairs before a grid restart for four racing laps.īut the red flag was used in Baku due to the amount of debris and the fact the race wouldn’t restart without it. The other option was to use a red flag and halt the race, as was seen in Azerbaijan when Verstappen suffered a tyre failure. A Safety Car was the bare minimum that race control could turn to.Ī VSC wasn’t sufficient as the car needed to be removed by crane, and there was also a small brake fire to put out initially. There were just five full laps remaining when Latifi spun in the dirty air behind Mick Schumacher, with his damaged car sitting right on the racing line on the exit of Turn 14. ONBOARD: ‘Max Verstappen you are the world champion’ – Relive the moment the Red Bull driver claimed his 1st title What options did race control have when Latifi crashed? And then Nicholas Latifi hit the wall at Turn 14 and everything changed. Verstappen made a pit stop for fresh hard tyres under a Virtual Safety Car when Antonio Giovinazzi stopped on track, but still couldn’t get the gap to Hamilton under 10 seconds. The first lap looked ever-more crucial as Hamilton comfortably extended his lead, and even some incredible defending from an off-strategy Sergio Perez (who was called a “legend” by Verstappen for his work) didn’t derail what looked like serene progress to the title. Taking the lead on the medium tyre – and retaining it on the first lap despite Red Bull disputing the fact he cut Turn 7 – meant he was in the box seat. Hamilton in control – until a twistĪfter a strong Saturday for Verstappen, Sunday started in the best possible fashion for Hamilton. We break down what happened on a night that will now forever be etched into F1 history. READ MORE: Fearless and magnificent – Why F1’s newest champion Verstappen has shown his true colours in 2021Īs Verstappen kept repeating after clinching his first crown, only one word summed it up – 'insane'. Why, then, was the manner in which that happened so controversial? Why did it produce such ill-feeling and rancour that the stewards were involved? And where does the sport go from here? But one man had to win – and one had to lose. Both men drove sublimely all year, their level never dipping below phenomenal. Make no mistake, Verstappen deserved this title. But one lap from the end, one lap from history, it all swung – and it was Max Verstappen who emerged triumphant in both the race and the championship. For two hours, Lewis Hamilton was on course for an unparalleled eighth title. After 1,296 laps, it all turned on the 1,297th and final. In some ways, it shouldn't have been a surprise that a remarkable see-sawing title fight was settled by a remarkable see-sawing finale. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |