Max Verstappen: Questionable calls at Abu Dhabi Grand Prix do little to stifle
Red Bull principal Christian Horner is heard muttering on the radio that his team “need a miracle,” and there are audible groans.
But then Williams driver Nicholas Latifi’s car crashes into a barrier and the images flash up on the big screen. A safety car is deployed and the overwhelmingly Dutch crowd holds its breath in anticipation. If the race restarts, Verstappen will be on fresher tires and driving right behind Hamilton, despite the Brit having established a healthy lead.
Suddenly, there is hope, and so the miracle comes to pass with one lap to go.
With the extra grip, Verstappen passes Hamilton in front of the jubilant partisan crowd at the newly redesigned turn five. He accelerates into the long back straight, for now, drowning out the cheers with the noise of his engine — but they will last long after the cars stop circling the track.
The controversial decision to allow a last-lap duel sparks fury in the Mercedes camp. Team principal Toto Wolff’s nostrils flare as he shouts down his mic, and George Russell, who will be driving a Mercedes car next year, tweeted in capital type that what has just happened is “unacceptable.”
He describes the ending as a “shame”, but it certainly doesn’t bother the ecstatic Dutch fans, who are already popping champagne bottles in the stands and soaking anyone nearby with alcohol.
He chokes up and is bear hugged by his father, who had playfully scolded him earlier in the day for not wearing an orange shirt. As he’s being dragged away to rejoin the celebrations and watch the Dutch national anthem being played, he roars back: “We are going to make a party!”
Yas Marina is painted orange
Abu Dhabi hotels are likely to be strewn with tired Verstappen fans Monday morning. By now, the hangover will have kicked in, but the joy of the night before remains.
Going into the final race of the 2021 championship, this season had been heralded as one of the greatest in the sport’s history. The two titanic rivals arrived at the Yas Marina Circuit level on points, setting up the perfect end to a title race which always had the potential to come down to the final moments.
And so on Sunday, the Orange Army descended on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix early in the day, bringing with them noise, color and…
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