F1's huge Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton Abu Dhabi GP controversy explained

[@TurtlelordGR]

People at The Race, please make an explanatory video about the different organisations in F1 (FOM, Liberty and the FIA), the roles, duties, responsibilities of stewards and the race director and where they belong to. People really could use it.

[@RalphMouline]

they belong in the bin

[@mini_steve]

Liberty obviously owns everything. Whatever driver has the most fans wins now. FIA will always back Michael in his very poor decision's. It has now become a freak show, and everyone will pay to see a freak. It ain't racing anymore when rules and regulations change every 15 seconds just to create drama. 90% of the drivers don't agree with what happened, the only drivers that do are employees of Honda or RB. Sorry Michael, you can't make a definitive decision if your testicle depends on it. Good luck next year, because I'm thinking you will be out of a job.

[@sayfami3927]

💯 maFIA JOB

[@LSchelvin71]

Yeah, unfair race Lewis have 57 laps leading Max only have 1 laps leading 😭😭🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@J5L5M6]

@@mini_steve So much so. Watching every second of this season and particularly this weekend on my F1TV account, it was evident in these final post race interviews that the other drivers themselves didn't want to give a full-blown congratulations to Verstappen without acknowledging that Hamilton was on the raw end of a bias situation. I honestly didn't care who won, but the way this all went down at conclusion has been pathetic. Absolutely ungentlemanly and pathetic.

[@Hambone171]

It really showed how long F1 has not been competitive that the FIA didn’t know how to handle two teams being that close to each other. Great season! Throw a couple more teams in the mix and their heads will explode

[@ilikeformula144]

Bring back 2012

[@DGaller85]

I dont think that has anything to do with it

[@mnm8818]

Rant: Carlos (3rd) had Riccardo and some other lapped car infront of him does he not get a chance to overtake Max or Lewis too???? it feels very weird... If you want lapped cars to go past safety car let all lapped cars go past it, the race isn't just max and Lewis lol or it shows dodgey-ness... I wouldn't have lapped the safety car and ask Lewis/ Merc for a favour/ $

[@philmorel1042]

F1 has always had periods of one team dominating for a long period followed by an upheaval. I mean Schumis dominance was perhaps the lowest point ever for F1. Imagine one person dominating and there are no overtakes at all. Yup that's how I remember 2000-2004. In the early 90s the Williams was so dominant they had to ban things seemingly every five minutes just to ensure the other cars were participating in the same race. I think generally there is more competition now than before over the long run. But as the FIA themselves say "Our role is to respect the rules and to be impartial and fair and transparent,". This statement speaks so much more. They are publicly answering to team criticisms and inadvertently proving our point while they do it.

[@DGaller85]

The FIA say in the post race report they wanted the cars to race and not finish under safety car. They also did not want lapped cars to interfere in the two leaders battle. Everything they did can be backed up by regulations which is why Mercedes ptotest was rejected. Makes sense doesn't it.

[@sighko]

With all the hype around F1 this year, plenty of my friends started watching, or started watching more seriously. So what I'll remember this season for is the fact that it brought me closer to some of my friends.

[@westie659]

Your on point there I’ve always liked it but this year I’ve watched every race

[@xXMINIJARVISXx]

Definitely

[@lfc-europe]

Completely agree. Been a great season for getting new watchers into the sport and also those who'd fallen out of love with it.

[@saabturbo16]

Old hands who have watched and attended F1 races, ( as well as other forms of motorsport) wont have seen anything like this in a final before where it boiled down to the last race last lap where the. existing rules were so obviously either ignored or manipulated. Although i come from Red Bulls base area and former teams like jaguar and Arrows, this race result leaves a sour taste in the mouth and I cant say its a celebration of the sport. This will probably be dubbed the Netflix Win .... because the sport didn't.

[@1982james111]

It is a Marmite sport and I love it. Well done Max on your first title win, respect from a Lewis fan 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿👍🏻 Ps can't wait for George Russell next season 🔥👌🏻

[@_ilsegugio_]

I've never been an Hamilton enthusiast, but I have to say his behaviour once he got out of the car was top class. Champion DNA.

[@martins3993]

Maybe he could teach his team a thing or two... This whole shouting and calling in the legal team is undignifying and childish.

[@McGirtUK]

@@martins3993 tbf, if I were in their position I would challenge it as far as the Court of Arbitration for Sport as it sets a bad precedent. If a race director decided to only partially apply rules at his or her discretion it creates unfair competition. For example, Sainz could have finished first or second if the cars between him and Verstappen were also cleared. Masi's decision disregarded the impact on the rest of the racers who were still competing for points.

[@3458-s3q]

@@McGirtUK like for real, this championship is a million dollar program for mercedes, getting "scammed" out of it by the FIA is a huge deal. I can totaly understand that people may find this appeal thing wrong for the sport, but its a more than understadable step for a multimillion dollar operation.

[@jugo85]

@@martins3993 Red Bull has been doing this all season long.. except of course now when the biggest of presents was given.. so they also have a thing or 2 to learn from Lewis.

[@LtAlguien]

@@McGirtUK Sorry if I sound antagonistic, but this is a literal case of "you reap what you sow". The "race director has the discretion to apply the rules" has been a thing for years and teams don't like to challenge it because that discretion can help them. For example this very race, Hamilton gaining an advantage by driving outside, you don't see Mercedes wanting to return position because "is illegal to gain an advantage offtrack", they were very happy there to go "if the race director said it was fine, is fine" Hell, Fernando Alonso is one of the most outspoken about this and Lewis/Mercedes fans were pretty happy to call him a crybaby over it when it didn't affect THEM. And besides, is all Mercedes trying to shift the blame, if they had changed tires they probably would have won, but they didn't and is 100% on them.

[@adr8]

We can all agree that a lot of inconsistencies were exposed this year, hopefully changes are brought in for the new era.

[@kurto123]

Consistently inconsistent.

[@IIGrayfoxII]

The FIA has always been like this, not just this year. Track limits is a good example. 1 race you can go 1 car length wide, no worries mate say FIA next race, go 1" wide, black & white flag.

[@ianhoughton2426]

Charlie Whiting is turning in his grave at all this. Masi needs to go!

[@twandepan]

@@IIGrayfoxII it has always bothered me though

[@ezdisunzha6816]

@@IIGrayfoxII And people still complain about F1 games penalty system not being realistic.

[@crazychimp1324]

“They aren’t rules , they’re more like … guidelines “

[@DaviMourao]

A set of suggestions

[@redda2]

Cry more

[@adamwhite1934]

Copy someone else’s reply more

[@waiwong6477]

Well I was actually the driver for the whole season - Wai Kuen Wong (Neo). I was acting as a reserve driver replaced Max Vesppen for more than 10 other F1 race. The press needs to get this right, otherwise what does this mean? Fake history? Please fix this matter because when I told people that I won the F1 world championship, they all think I had serious mental health issues. That's not right and really not fair. Thanks 🙏

[@ParkDaddy42]

As Daniel Riccardo said yesterday over team radio after the race....."I'm glad I'm not a part of whatever that was, that was really fucked up" should explain to all these keyboard warriors exactly how to feel about the way this season ended. Such an absolute shame.

[@bigups43]

And Alonso said the opposite about the unlapped cars not initlally being allowed through, so whats your point? Would you want the championship deciding race to end under a safety car?

[@denegra]

The unlapped cars should've been let through several laps before. The stewards fucked up and tried to rectify their mistake. That is what is causing all this confusion. It's standard procedure to let the lapped cars go through, not the other way around.

[@2005StangMan]

@@denegra they can’t let cars through till track is clear which happened on lap 57. By the standards of the book and years worth of precedents, the SC should have been out therefore until the end of lap 58, meaning Lewis wins. Merc banked on it taking a while to clean up Latifi, their bet paid off and then Masi decided to change standards to fit what he wanted.

[@Derpn8r73]

Yeah, Hamilton got fucked!!

[@thommobris]

Daniel couldn't have summed up that better, for me, the most bullshit ending to ANY motorsport season I've watched in last 17 years (ironic F1 started my love for motorsport) so happy to cut F1 out of my life for good now & will invest my viewing time in World Rally Championship, British Touring Cars, MotoGP & Superbikes

[@mholden020]

Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia made me question Formula 1’s integrity in regards to how the stewards/Masi operate. No other sport, and certainly no other racing series I’m familiar with, gives penalty “offers” instead of saying “This is how it is”, and the possibility that lobbying/whining led to a change of mind and some lapped cars being waved by is appalling.

[@eggman1006]

Really? It took you that long? It waas clear since silverstone that something fishy was going on

[@XxmillerniaxX]

I can think of quite a few that actually suspend or partially enforce orders depending on if the team accepts fault, and is fully enforced if they do the same thing again.

[@j.vonhogen9650]

@@XxmillerniaxX- That's different. In this case, there was uncertainty about the consequences for Red Bull of rejecting the offer. Rules have to be as clear as possible before they are being applied. That has been one of the most fundamental legal principles for many centuries. If you start negociating about the rules on the basis of incomplete information, you are entering the domain of Game Theory, which will quickly turn into politics if decision making authorities are involved that are supposed to enforce and interpret the rules. Rules will always be incomplete, because there will always be exceptional cases that cause inconsistencies, uncertainty and situations of conflict. Interpretation of the existing rules in unforseen, atypical situations will therefore always be necessary. However, interpreting the rules is not the same as breaking the rules, and I think all F1 teams are aware of that, which is of course why they hire lawyers all the time, especially Mercedes.

[@fjkhamdan]

Don’t forget red flags in Saudi 🚩 on matters of safety 🤷‍♂️

[@XxmillerniaxX]

@@j.vonhogen9650 Even courts with laws and sentencing don't have one size fits all, hence plea bargaining, paroling, minimum-maximum fines, time off for good behavior. Your only talking about F1...

[@connor1424]

It’s such a shame that such an incredible season had to end like this. That being said, whoever you support, I think we can all agree the FIA has been a mess this season and NEEDS to be fixed. Seb for race director anyone?

[@amanda123889]

Kimi for RD that would be brilliant to see

[@palmermonsen9098]

Seb or Alonso would make a great race director, lets hope thats what they do in 2023 or whenever they retire

[@mango2538]

wdym??? this was the GREATEST ENDING EVER!!!

[@jkliao6486]

Mate, give this poor man a break, he needs to be the driver, the pit crew, the strategist, the inspector, the fire fighter, the medical car driver and now the race director?!

[@lukewood2662]

@@jkliao6486 he always gets his drincc so he'd be okay

[@jd3330]

No matter who won that race, the FIA needs more specific rules especially in a sport where milliseconds, few centimeters, and little factors play BIG ROLES. The whole issue about overtaking/going out of the track needs to be resolved immediately.

[@nickmullen2830]

They have specific rules. They just choose not to follow them...

[@Kevinschart]

@@nickmullen2830 right now they are playing lawyer games. "any lapped car" does not mean "all lapped cars". so the could have picked 2 or three cars from anywhere on the track to unlap themselves. they literally have the ability to do that based on that interpretation. it's ridiculous. after hearing massi negotiating with horner last week this is the icing on the cake.

[@nickmullen2830]

@@Kevinschart Totally agree. In dozens of other races, the race director has never just let a few cars through. Those races set the precedent. You cant just interpret a rule on a day thats out of whack and against numerous other races and the history of the sport.

[@terks43]

@@Kevinschart It's hilarious, and two faced, that you are accusing them of playing "lawyer games" when Mercedes brought a literal lawyer to the track.

[@T3gubbfet]

I actually think another way around. Maybe there are too many rules? A book spezifying all possible scenarios seems very big. Maybe fewer rules and more power given to competent judges (seeing the issue/case from a racing point of view with a bigger whole in mind) would result in better racing on the track and fewer debates?

[@TRC_Dton]

As a neutral over both drivers and teams, there’s been too many issues this season with the FIA, Red Bull and Mercedes. Look at how many protests have been lobbied this season for “unfair advantages” just to “peg back the other team”. I’ve been watching this sport over a decade and I can not remember a time there have been so many rule changed and directives mid season. On top of that seeing how these broadcasts are influencing decisions on the track is out of order. Really it needs to be no team can talk to the race director while cars are on the circuit and then deal with everything afterwards, even if it means harsher penalties. It’s been a fun and dramatic season to watch, but it’s shown just how ridiculous the whole system is as well

[@bredabyrne5171]

Lets hope this is the end.

[@mojahangard]

Completely agree!

[@LiveFreeMoto]

truth! when you see verstappen take the corner and then the camera pans and theres lewis just accelerating off in the distance with no penalty

[@marcanthony7020]

Yep, I DO think F1 was clearly making decisions based on what would make things most exciting. Red Bull had an enormous lead going into Silverstone and Mercedes were allowed to wreck the RB in back-to-back races with the strongest penalty going to Max who had to replace his engine afterward. He lost the huge lead that he earned and Lewis got just a 10 second penalty for sending Max to the hospital.

[@8power0]

I HATE TO SAY IT,,, BUT AN EIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR A BLACK GUY , MORE THEN MICHAEL SCHUMACHER THE POWERS THAT BE WOULD NEVER LET THAT BE THIS IS WHY MICHAEL MASSEY WAS REALLY BROUGHT IN IN THE FIRST PLACE AND ALL OF THE FUNNY LITTLE RULE CHANGES BEGIN.

[@camerondeans9056]

Absolutely disagree that's it's exciting! A manufactured scenario where all the other laps meant nothing. "Can I watch a winner-takes-all, one lap race where one competitor has been clearly and deliberately handicapped", said no one ever!

[@adkan1995]

i just dont understand why masi didnt call out the red flag the moment latifi crashed instead, it would have been the most fair to red bull and mercedes, gives a few laps to battle rather than 1, and takes the heat out of the marshals to clear the crash ASAP and the entire field can also be unlapped as a result

[@frankym8621]

Because Masi decided before the race that he will not consider a red flag

[@PlayrTBH]

@@frankym8621 that’s silly to be honest red flags are used for the safety of track staff and the drivers he’s really pulling shit if he said he won’t do a red flag.

[@JohnnyEMatos]

Red flags are usually reserved either for bad weather or moments where the safety crew needs to be on track for a longer than usual period of time, like in Jeddah for example, where they had to fix a barrier. All they had to do was remove a car from the way and the track was cleared promptly, so a red flag would have been just too much. Also, if we take into account that Lewis got a massive advantage by cutting a huge corner without even getting called out for it, like Max in Jeddah or Antonio in Texas, it means that Lewis' advantage wasn't all clean to begin with. It's a shame because none of the drivers were at fault in anything, it's just that the FIA is too inconsistent

[@vespa7961]

The race can't be restarted when 75% is completed

[@ryanbanks4265]

@@JohnnyEMatos so you agree with masi’s decision concerning the end of the race but you don’t agree with the decision that it was Lewis’s corner and he was ahead of max into the apex and was essentially forced off track. How typical of a Red Bull fan.

[@Tee61]

Max fans 🤝 Lewis fans Masi out

[@xmun2450]

Honestly whichever way the championship went i dont think Micheal Masi or whoever has the responsibility deserves to keep their jobs. This season has been so inconsistent to the point that i actually think they have liberty media in their earbuds running the show , to make a show.

[@oldmossystone]

LMC desperate to crack the US motorsports market... Lewis driving with Black Lives Matter painted on his helmet... probably just coincidence...

[@DaviMourao]

That wouldn't surprise me, that whole confusion between no cars allowed to overtake the safety car/some cars allowed to overtake the safety car looks very like "something" was putting pressure on Masi to have a final mano a mano between Max and Lewis.

[@robj1510]

Michael Masi isn’t involved in the decision making around penalties and stuff. Firing him would be like shooting the messenger

[@cheesyriceo4]

Drive to Survive multiplied F1’s viewership. Do with that what you will.

[@iain6882]

@@cheesyriceo4 Hopefully that makes up for the 2 decade+ fans they are going to lose with this reality tv bullshit.

[@radu.muresan]

This is how i will remember this season: 2 great drivers putting up a massively close and beautiful battle this whole season but tainted and messed with by the incompetence of Masi and the FIA. it's a shame Max and Lewis had to go through this and it's a shame for the fans that understand the sport.

[@Mark-zk3gu]

Can you please explain to me how one decision from the race director tainted the season? Masi did the right thing which was pave the way for a one lap championship showdown. The rest of it is just some really bad coping from the Hamilton stans. It's embarrassing. However way you look at it, whether Masi messed up or not, the final lap would've been a 1 lap showdown between verstappen and hamilton, and verstappen would've won.

[@mateuszsulek8311]

@@Mark-zk3gu ill just give a few incidents: Brazil, Silverstone, Monza, Spa ( because they classified it as a race), Saudi Arabia, Austria (giving ridiculous penalties) and Masi's Inconsistency. I also disagree that the final race would've been a 1 lap showdown anyway. Lewis was keeping up with Max's pace and max had 5 lapped cars to pass. I was a neutral so I don't really care who won but masi made everything in the regulations much more confusing to the fans and the drivers who disagree with each other on what is and isn't allowed.

[@radu.muresan]

@@Mark-zk3gu 2 decisions in this race, one unfair to max, the other to lewis and that's just this race, there have been countless throughout the season.

[@BallisticTech]

@@Mark-zk3gu There was no show down. There was 0 chance of Lewis keeping Max behind on tires that were something like 30 laps older. That's the sport. Putting Max right behind Lewis gave him the race win and championship. It erased the 50 something laps of amazing driving that Lewis had done. SC's are part of the sport and they often have that effect. But a specific decision made by Race Control that seemingly went against their own regulations and ways they've done things in the past resulted in that supposed "1 lap showdown". People that don't understand the sport might think Max passed Lewis out of pure skill. It was essentially luck in that RC put him there.

[@Wreidh]

@@BallisticTech ANd that is Mercedes Fault, THEY had the exact same chance to go in to the pit, But chose not to! You cant blame the Fia for them beeing on worse tires, Its a final, For a championship, in a motor-race, Not your average field-day! Redbull took a bet and it worked, Becuase it should be decided by racing, And not a safety car just because Mercedes did not change tires.

[@Scuffed_Andy]

Although I got the result I wanted I don't believe the end justifies the means. The finish of that race was not handled correctly. Entertainment shouldn't be considered more important than sportsmanship and fair racing.

[@allanhughes7859]

The merc team will do anything to win is that so fair ???????????

[@MIB_95]

@@allanhughes7859 Bro, that’s every team on the grid.

[@user-fn5xg7qt7u]

Cope

[@timlolxP]

@@allanhughes7859 Yeah thats pretty much fair... Every Team in F1 would do the same with this high stakes on the line.

[@rudicon4u]

Top, top comment.

[@trioli10000]

This race was just the top of so many miss calls from the stewards over the whole season. First of all, changing the stewards every race is producing different calls. F1 should have a clear and simple as possible ruling. Just have a look at MotoGP

[@vvs6433]

The stewards are not FIA employee. They are local authorities specific for every track. If you want to race on that track you have to respect their rules.

[@temp0ra]

MotoGP rules are really not necessary anyway, do something off the rules someone is in the wall or off the bike.

[@terrell2864]

Respect the rules like not overtacking the defacto safety car???????? Just admit it your tired of the better driver Lewis winning.

[@thomaslangan3466]

They are just very inconsistent in their application of the rules. It was ok for verstappan in Brazil but not last week ? That’s my only issue be consistent.

[@Raddon]

@@terrell2864 If we are being honest Mercedes has benefited a lot of shaddy decisions all year, including not penalyzing Hamilton for an illegal overlap in lap 1..

[@MrACOUSTICPETE]

The " tightness " of the battle has exposed weaknesses in the FIA rules and there application . They need to up their game and get their shit together and be as professional as the teams !! Heartfelt congratulations to Max and Lewis for their truly epic performances this season . Thank you !

[@makeouthill6234]

Imo the weaknesses aren‘t in the sporting regulations, but in the members of the FIA (Masi plays a big part in this). The rules are there to prevent such things from happening, but then there is Masi who just bends the rules the way he wants, to get better entertainment. F1 has to decide whether they want to be a sport for the purpose of sport or for the purpose of entertainment, witch are two very different things. If the first thing should apply to F1, they should probably consider another racing direcor or come up wirh a different solution, like two race direktors or just a bigger Team to prevent such debacles from happening.

[@MZ-yz6wt]

@@makeouthill6234 completely agree

[@jrlewrssel9690]

@@makeouthill6234 boohoooo cry some more little crybaby

[@haydenholdsworth9632]

@@makeouthill6234 i agree that Masi has caused trouble, and over the season has created a situation where a win on either side could easily be labeled illegitimate, all in the name of tainted entertainment. But I think its hard now to say the FIA rules don't need to be updated. I think the way race safety precautions create unfair scenarios in key moments, where the teams benefit based on luck and bad faith officiating with Masi at the helm and lose their progress from real efforts is a sign the FIA needs to massively revise the way GPs are run in order to save the sport from itself. I'd like to see a rule where any safety car in the last 10% of the race is automatically red flagged, so that everyone benefits equally, and teams cant have their weekends saved or ruined by high risk pit decisions.

[@alfrede.newman1838]

I thought one aspect for the changes to cars for next year is 'competitive' racing, which after this season does NOT look promising for the Stewards and the Sport! When I turn on to watch an F1 race I expect to see the best in car technoogy and the skill of top drivers, NOT questions on the rules that influence lots of races. For Abu Dhabi, of course appeals have to reference Rules, HOW CAN IT BE THAT any driver can go under a Safety Car in for FRESH tires and return WITHOUT any grid penalty which is what Max got. Yet for 50 plus laps Max was following Lewis who even Red Bull admitted clearly had a good car AND with Lewis having a good lead in time over Max for 50 laps before the Safty Car came out? There's something VERY fundamentally wrong in F1, with all respecct to Max's driving style, and it's not the F1 cars or the F1 drivers. Or lets just give the Stewards a race number, and line them up on the start grid with the other drivers!!!!

[@SerjBassist]

I do feel like Masi never got out of the "substitute teacher" role. I would have understood that if it were his first season as F1, but this one is already his third. But then again, it's the first time since 2012 that the championship battle goes until the last race with two drivers from different teams, F1 was a different sport a decade ago.

[@rickjohnson9856]

I don’t honk the closeness of the battle should’ve been a factor. The rules are the rules and Mass seemed unwilling to follow them consistently.

[@anandthegeek6657]

@@rickjohnson9856 truly agreed. Atleast to watch on TV from India, got the feel he was a substitute of red bull...

[@G00NERJ80]

When in the history of the sport has only some cars been allowed to un lap themselves and others not? One way radio transmissions from the fia and a new race director for next season needed

[@Maravic0513]

When was a driver that gained an advantage illegally allowed to keep his place? The calls were all bs, just sucks for the Hamilton fans that they got the short straw in the end

[@aadi1806]

@@Maravic0513 the team principals shouldnt be allowed to talk to the race director

[@PhilGerb93]

@@aadi1806 "Please no safety car"

[@bananabatsy3708]

Lewis would still have lost. What is your point? The only thing that mattered was for VER to close the gap with HAM. And this is happening in any possible scenario after a yellow flag. Blame it on Latiffi if you want.

[@nanaduah8462]

@@bananabatsy3708 how would Lewis have lost? Mate he was faster than verstappen on old softs when he was on new ones? If the cars hadn’t been allowed to unlap themselves Hamilton would have won

[@FayyaazAhmed]

Max and Lewis deserved better than Masi. Pure incompetence for the whole season.

[@noviranger88]

I agree. He's done injustices to both teams.

[@arapaimagold8088]

Lewis deserves better race engineer.

[@denis700d]

My problem is with their hesitation and constant change in their decisions. We've seen them often being influenced by the teams and changing the orders after they've announced otherwise. We saw that play against both max and Loois. I hope theyhave a stronger criteria next year

[@BK-uy9nj]

“Any” cars does not mean “all” cars. Case closed.

[@2jzandys444]

They need to get rid of the teams being able to speak with the race director during the race

[@n_otfound]

@@BK-uy9nj while that is true I feel as if the Race stewards really wanted a “Race” till the end they could of red flagged the session where both drivers could of gone in and got new soft tires and had a race restart with a 5 lap sprint for the title decider, that would of been the most fair thing to do in that situation and also would of stayed within in the rules without all this controversy, we would of got a proper title fight between the 2 leaders, pitting Hamilton (with 50 lap old tires) against Verstappen (new soft tires) with 1 lap to go wasn’t in my opinion Fair at all, they wanted a Race Finale so make it fair for both drivers not just 1, Max Deserved the championship, but this race was Hamilton’s from the start and as a Fan of F1 for many years it’s really hard not to feel some type of way when the “Racing aspect” of F1 isn’t in the drivers hands, it should always come down to the ones on track, not off of it

[@milkshakemuncher]

@@n_otfound I agree it would be great to see the two drivers on same tyre compound battling. But fair, what is fair. Fair is giving both teams the opportunity to switch tyres. The FIA did that, Mercedes strategists chose not to pit Lewis, Mercedes strategists told him to stay out as they didn't want to lose track position. Every team, every car had the option to pit. So the FIA did not pit Lewis on old hards against Max on new softs, Mercedes did. It was a costly error, but an error nonetheless.

[@n_otfound]

@@milkshakemuncher True!! But what I meant by that is the way the Stewards are justifying their actions is by saying they wanted a “Fair Race for the title decider for both drivers” , it’s hard to see how it was fair for Hamilton as a driver where he had no say in whether he can come into the pit for new tires or not, so to make it fait to the “Drivers” they should of red flagged the session, that’s why I think it wasn’t fair as it was out of Hamilton’s control and he did everything right today but luck just wasn’t there for him, that’s why In my opinion if the Stewards really wanted a Fair Race for both respective drivers give Hamilton (not Mercedes) and Verstappen (not Redbull) both a fighting chance to claim their respective Drivers Championship, in terms of that I Feel the Stewards could of done more at the end of the race to make it Fair for everyone, While Yes Mercedes should of pitted Hamilton, it wasn’t Hamilton’s Fault, so it least give him as a driver a fighting chance, that’s why I say it’s hard not to feel disappointed when the race win isn’t up to the drivers but by outside forces

[@SupaRich89]

For me this season will always be remembered as a great battle between 2 great driver but also one that was so messed up and tainted by massi and his poor decision making. no matter what team you support, i think we can agree he influenced too many races with bad calls. There shouldn't be able to contact the race director during the race and take any appeals to them after the race both Toto and Horner need to be put in their place and be told to wait. The race control needs to be looked at desperately, and after this race ill never trust massi to do a good job again. I know Christian Horner says it was the right call, but if Hamilton was 2nd on newer tyres he would be the same as toto and Mercedes and would launch a protest as well, I don't think anyone can deny that . Any normal race and that would have ended with a safety car, it shouldn't be changed just because its the last race. I just hope the Fia sort themselves out for next year so everyone know where they stand. And who knows what will happen next year, we could see 2 different teams fighting for the front with the new cars.

[@wierdtromebonekid]

Well what about Hamilton fucking cutting the track lap 1

[@timeacott]

@@wierdtromebonekid I guess you're referring to Lewis once again avoiding the Maxident. Max bottled the start, got desperate and can count himself lucky that Lewis saw that coming. If Lewis had stayed on track, Max would have taken them both out and (as he had been warned) he would have had points deducted. Lewis really saved Max's championship in that moment.

[@doxydoxdelamanca9902]

^ This right here. If he had done the opposite and not removed the lapped cars, he would have been accused of fixing it in fav of Merc.

[@doxydoxdelamanca9902]

@@wierdtromebonekid He had no way to go after Max kamikaze'd in the inside. But let's pls go down the 'what aboutism' road.

[@Wreidh]

@@doxydoxdelamanca9902 Exactly, Merc just bet on that and did not take the chance Red bull went for. If they would have pitted, they would have been on softs aswell and have their last lap. But mercedes TEAM chose not to. Easy as that. That lapped cars can pass is just normal

[@MrSilverfish12]

I think people underestimate F1's desire to put on a show. There was no way in hell the FIA were gonna allow this race to finish behind the safety car. They don't care if RB or MB won they just wanted to put on a show. It happens in the NBA and NFL and I can easily notice it here, it explains all the silly calls by Masi and the stewards. They wanted Max and Lewus to be close like this and boy did they succeed. I'm just worried that f1 will be more artificial than what it already is.

[@mortystraphouse5077]

Does not happen in NBA and nfl. No comparison to this

[@f3p]

In the NBA and NFL it’s just bad calls. At least there they try and hide the fact that they are favouring another side. It’s not even close to what happened in Abu Dhabi

[@gold6813]

@@mortystraphouse5077 yes it does happen in the NBA. You must be young.

[@mikemoggerson6651]

@@f3p so what was the decision on lap 1 then? That CLEARLY favoured Mercedes. Even the British commentators said so. What about silverstone? Hungary? That’s a +50 point swing in Hamilton’s favour. The reality is the right man won the championship, farce or not.

[@MrSilverfish12]

@@mortystraphouse5077 you are kidding right?

[@zachjo1457]

Max is a deserving champion, but the FIA foregoing their own rules for the sake of Hollywood and failing to admit their faults took a lot of integrity away from the sport today

[@Cataclysm1]

Are you looking at all the rules, or just the one being protested by M-B?

[@travisfubu9053]

He can't be a deserving champion if he needed help from race control with a last min rule change

[@danielfernandez3938]

Exactly Masi and his team created a big mess this year with so many penalties imposed or not imposed

[@MyloSkeng]

Money talks

[@eppsislike]

They did it plenty of times in favor of the Mercs. Glad Max had his luck today.

[@markmierau5189]

I really hope I remember this season for the titanic battle of the two best drivers right now rather than for the inconsistent rulings of Masi and his team. Longtime Hamilton fan so not happy right now but I knew Verstappen was going to win a title sooner or later. Here's hoping next season comes close to being this exciting.

[@tonlit4640]

Thank you for your unbiased statement. I wish all fans would do the same.. Up to me both drivers deserve the title. Both have had lucky and not so lucky days. This day Max was the lucky one.

[@BK-uy9nj]

“Any” cars does not mean “all” cars. Case closed. Max wins based on rules. Mercedes misinterpreted the fucking rules and were denied.

[@karu3067]

Same, I believe the only problems that we have this season is just inconsistency by the stewards. It's a shame these newer fans just keep throwing their anger towards the drivers every time it doesn't gone their teams way instead of Masi's poor management.

[@yashdiwane1572]

Exactly my view too. Also, haven't really seen such inconsistencies in the last 13 years of me watching f1

[@umaganonu]

Great stuff to hear from a level headed Lewis/Max fan. Its been a fantastic season to watch but the extreme positions of the Lewis/Max ultras has made decent interactions between racing fans near impossible. Good luck for next season man.

[@senser9326]

I have to say I am very new to the F1 scene and have quickly fell in love with the sport. The one thing that is really frustrating though is how unclear some of the rules are and how inconsistent they are with upholding them. I mean I understand that the sport is incredibly complex and it’s not possible to make the right call 100% of the time (in instances like the first lap where it might be debatable if Max pushed Hamilton off for example), but with a virtual safety car… aren’t the rules clear on how it should be handled? Maybe it’s just me but regardless of which team you support it would be nice if they could read their own rule book.

[@samwalsh785]

Did you not watch the video? The explanation is pretty damn clear

[@samwalsh785]

To be fair that’s not me having a go^ I understand some rules and their interpretation can be confusing. Hope you’re enjoying F1 and great job for getting into it. Been watching every race since I was 8 (now 27) and it’s the best sport 👌🏼

[@darrenjackson813]

There are clear rules. How ever they always, have something to cover themselves like 15.3 that says race director has overirding control. Which is basically a jail free card for not following their own regulations.

[@ethandickpic4205]

You’re bang on. The crowding a car off track is very ambiguous, and will always be debatable. But the safety car rules are black and white and clear as day. They broke multiple regulations with that safety car, and IMO is total BS what they did.

[@XxmillerniaxX]

@@ethandickpic4205 They actually didn't break any rules, get over it. The rules do not state all lapped cars, it states any. It is not the first time in an FIA sanctioned race that not all cars have been allowed to unlap themselves. Once the safety car is coming in this lap sign is displayed it means this lap and not the next, and it overrides the 1 lap rule. If you think the racing director is one-sided and wanted Red Bull to win you must have your hand over your eyes and ears, considering most of the calls this year have not gone Redbulls way, but Mercedes. There was no reason to Red Flag the race because the f1 cars were still able to safely lap behind the safety car. Think it's unfair, I think exceeding the number of times you can change a Power Unit even though there was no damage to the Power Unit is unfair when you know that the increase in power will win you the race or give your driver the advantage despite the penalty. I also think that any F1 driver that can't avoid a slowing car that is travelling down a straight deserves a closer look at too if you are going to penalize a driver for "brake checking". I think allowing a car a 3 second + advantage after shortcutting a corner is unfair. I don't even support Redbull and I can think of quite a few incidents this year that have definitely gone Mercedes way. Face it, if it was the other way around you would not even be commenting.

[@letsplayalex8268]

As an Alonso Fan I was highly against a SC finish, since it happened already with Vettel winning his WDC behind the SC. But first to say you can't overtake then only let those 5 cars between those two overtake last second before the SC point, giving not only Lewis, but every other driver with backmarkers in between them and the track position in front a huge disadvantage, especially the one who was behind the last car that got to unlap, is just a very unfair procedure and is in my opinion the death of this season. Today showed that this wasn't about racing for the FIA, and I don't think they wanted to favour someone, they just wanted the best publicity for F1, a last lap decision, big drama and forced those two drivers last lap to fight under inequel circumstances. I'm also amazed how Latifi being out on this part ON the track and the requirement of a crane didn't got red flagged, while other race were immediately red flagged. Standing Start was the only way to get a fair fight for everyone on the grid, not only those two in front.

[@pranaykenkre2203]

couldnt agree more

[@LiiQoHD]

I agree with your points, but regarding the Latifi crash not getting red flagged, Kimi had an almost identical crash in FP3 and Masi was asked then if the session would get red flagged should a similar incident happen during the race to which he replied no

[@94nolo]

Well said.

[@Acers2K]

Did you hear the reaction of Alonso on the SC? Max should've been 2 cars in front of him. Your Idol wanted them to race. and even if the lapped cars should have passed, it should have happened way earlier, that is also why Alonso was laughing.

[@kanjangamukwena53]

I agree with all of you well said, if all the safty cars had lapped the leader, then even verstapen would have been feeling the heat from number 3 and 4 and would not have been able to make that over take as he would have been attacking and defending.

[@robdove8341]

I've been watching F1 on TV for over 50 years and I cannot remember anything like this. Safety Cars often change race outcomes, but the procedures were always the same. Lapped cars unlap themselves & racing is ready to resume after the pack is all back together. If there aren't enough laps available, then the race finishes under the SC. That's how the game used to be played.

[@furstfr]

The game changed OG. Masi saw an opportunity to give the fans what they wanted and took it. Entertainment over integrity..

[@josephprocopio8423]

Who wants to see a drivers championship decided by a safety car? I know I dont

[@registrado54]

@@josephprocopio8423 much better than the farce we got presented today, because the procedure is something set in stone yet Masi wanted to have fun giving drama to the netflix crew

[@robdove8341]

@@furstfr Without a doubt. Did you see Ted asking Jacky Stewart who will win it yesterday? He said Max, then added "we need a change".

[@allenmccraw3339]

@@josephprocopio8423 doesnt matter who wants to see it...what matters is that the FIA rules werent followed by the FIA itself.

[@sharanmavinkere4333]

Yeah, the FIA throughout the season has been pretty inconsistent on their decisions, but if it wasn't for these two great drivers, we just wouldn't have seen a season battle which is this close. I mean, they were literally a pit stop ahead of the car in third for the most part of the season. So in my opinion, if it weren't for these two who drove their hearts out, we wouldn't have had such a great year.

[@zm6301]

You mean "if the race officials hadn't shown Max favoritism by allowing reckless driving on multiple occasions or doing a 3 lap weather check behind the safety car at Spa before calling the race, we wouldn't have seen a season battle which is this close."

[@geertjanssen133]

@@zm6301 😭

[@guymears2340]

Had Max not gotten away with multiple decision go his way. How on earth a driver is found guilty of brake checking and only handed a 10 second penalty, which changed nothing just shows how utterly ridiculous the FIA are and how much Max did get away with.

[@abcxyz123]

Why is it not mentioned by British media how Toto was the force behind what happened today? After Spa he requested not to ever have a race ending with a safety car again and the team leaders got together with the FIA to add another asterix to the rule book. Toto is a spoiled hypocrite partly responsible for plenty of exceptions and confusion in the rulings

[@harrydrees9714]

@@zm6301 aaah little cry baby.

[@gbgt2]

I give Verstappen and Hamilton a 10/10 for their performances this season. They have both been a class above everyone else. Michael Masi I give a 1/10 and hope he never oversees another F1 race.

[@raza9tixx]

Honestly am on masi on this one, toto literally begged so the race ends behind the safety car, the " this is Motorsports, we want car race" will forever be a line of a true racing fan.

[@TriNguyen-ft2nl]

@@raza9tixx well, rules are rules, you cannot break the rules just for entertainment even if it will ruin all the hard work of somebody.

[@TriNguyen-ft2nl]

@@raza9tixx If Cristiano's or Messi's team is denied an obvious penalty in the stoppage time which can decide the result of the match in a final and then they lost out on the penalty shootout just for the "entertainment reason", will you be happy with it?

[@ruudjepuudje]

Missing the first corner in the last lap in Baku is definitely a reason to not give Hamilton a 10/10. This loss of 25 (or 18) points cost him a lot

[@ruudjepuudje]

@@TriNguyen-ft2nl Masi has the right to overrule some rules as mentioned in the video.

[@georgezheng8142]

I wonder why the lapped cars (Daniel Riccardo & Lance Stroll) between Carlos Sainz and Max were not cleared. Merc could argue these lapped cars protected Max from being attacked from Carlos from behind, when the race restarted

[@Duuuval23]

Dude I didn’t even think about that.

[@swagglord_F1]

Excellent point

[@nijjijjion204]

That is a big question why weren't 3rd and 4th allowed to fight for 2nd and 3rd for instance? Cherry picking people who could unlap themselves is just 100% farce.

[@IIGrayfoxII]

Like Sainz would even have a chance to fight Max. Its like saying a Back marker and Lewis will Battle it out. Ferrari is not a front marker team this year. They're top mid team

[@1greenMitsi]

@@IIGrayfoxII so you are saying other teams shouldnt be given the same in race rules as mercedes and rb?

[@ankledsquid]

This race really sums up the season very well, some good on track battle, a bit of contact (almost) and the fia being dogshit

[@a_stone]

Pretty much. I've seen more consistency out of Russian game developers lmao.

[@abcxyz123]

Why is it not mentioned by British media how Toto was the force behind what happened today? After Spa he requested not to ever have a race ending with a safety car again and the team leaders got together with the FIA to add another asterix to the rule book. Toto is a spoiled hypocrite partly responsible for plenty of exceptions and confusion in the rulings

[@a_stone]

@@abcxyz123 Because then they would realise that it's their own fault for causing this.

[@muppetpaster]

Butthurt... 🤣

[@Acernese45]

What about a red flag instead of safety car? That would've sorted the lapped cars, stopped the race from continuing and leave a fair start for all teams

[@metrofilmer8894]

True not to mention that the wall is pretty much right on the side of the track and there are no cranes on the outside of the wall in the spot where Latifi crashed, so it would have likely been the safest thing for them to immediately call a red flag

[@arapaimagold8088]

How about telling Merc to not easily dismissed Lewis request for box.

[@idrisb07]

This “fair start” y’all are talking about is really none of race control’s business. When to change tyres is completely up to you as long as you use at least two different compounds. It’s all part of the race.

[@Magariz1283]

They had completed more than 90% of the race, that could have triggered an immediate end to the race. Was my thought as well until that detail. In short, there was no good resolution to the situation and would have been controversial anyways.

[@alexz7766]

@@arapaimagold8088 Lewis had more to lose as he would have lost the lead and with safety car so close to the end of the race there was no guarantee that the race would have resumed with only 4 laps to go (with safety cars taking an average of 3-4 laps to resolve). Had Lewis pitted, Max would have done the opposite and might have won under the safety car). Leading the race is a lose-lose in terms of strategy options, at least when those options are considered in real time.

[@ondraspendlik9759]

First up, let's change the rules. Lapped cars will ALWAYS be allowed to unlap themselves to get into the right spot (less confusion for viewers, slower cars cleared out of the way). The safety car should end at the end of the lap where the last unlapping car overtook it (to not waste time and racing laps, obviously, the overtaking needs to be done after the track is ready for the race to resume, since the unlapping cars will push to catch up to the field/stay together). With that being said, let's also prohibit the teams from changing tyres during red flags, unless the tyre is clearly damaged and would be dangerous to continue on.

[@veckgames]

As a fan, I feel cheated by the FIA's decision not to red flag the race. We could've had Verstappen and Hamilton duke it out for 5 laps on fresh tyres in an enthralling finale for the best F1 season in recent memory and instead we got Verstappen picking off a limping Hamilton on 40+ lap old tyres after a safety car erased the 11-second gap separating them.

[@robburgundy9539]

I would like that too. Shit happens.

[@krioni86sa]

*As a Lewis' fanboi..Edit your comment LOL

[@LG-dt7lg]

Cry about it :)

[@alexgiannikoulis481]

100% agree. What a shame for the fans. FIA dropped the ball.

[@wrs900]

Agreed!

[@leeumney7675]

I've been watching F1 for around 40 years, this season put the dazzle back into the sport, instead of the title being claimed several races ago it going down to the wire has done wonders for the sport. The FIA need to curb the teams access to the race director except for SPECIFIC items, not to lobby them on what their decisions should be. Bring on 2022.

[@rogerbennett9641]

Their should be a drivers meeting to agree on the rules using previous incidents and resulting judgements over the last 3 or more seasons to decide what was got right and what was got wrong and use that as a basis for rewriting the rules to end any future inconsistencies they should have a written and video based template to refer too.

[@salamander2939]

IT was all staged

[@_serpent]

I agree. This situation, where Horner or Wolff are allowed to pick up any headset and just scream at race director, is embarrassing and shouldn't be allowed.

[@flammenjc]

>this season put the dazzle back into the sport Really? Seeing piss poor racecraft and the dirtiest driver in the last 10 years winning a championship before learning how to actually race people? I couldn't feel more opposite.

[@kaboomblueskies]

@Ponfi Verstappen should have had his points deducted for Brazil. The FIA fiddled with their rules in Abu Dhabi to ensure the young white dude who would kill his grandma to win a race, won that race. Hamilton had it sewn up until the fia cheated.

[@mortonmedia]

That was such a weird ending.... im stoked for Max but jeez that was pretty sus letting only 5 cars through under SC.

[@DreOneil]

Maybe It was but how I see it based how they view blue flags for making the backmarkers not interfere with the front runners. If people believe in the blue flags then any way possible should be OK to not let backmarkers come between the driver fighting so I see it as fair probably not how it was done but still. I dnt like blue flags cuz I feel if u that fast u shouldn't need help. But that's how it is and I'm glad it working in Max's favour with all the bad luck.

[@Duuuval23]

@@DreOneil too bad that’s not the rule.

[@mikemoggerson6651]

@@Duuuval23 many, many rules are broken all the time. Do I need to remind you of the 5 unpunished infringements Mercedes made last weekend at Saudi Arabia? Also, according to the RULE, what happened on lap 1 was actually very harsh on Verstappen. An ambitious dive bomb that’s been ruled fair for years and years in formula 1, and Hamilton got the benefit that Verstappen DIDN’T get last weekend. Also, the race director has the ability to overrule. That’s the most important thing. Was it fair that Hamilton took out Verstappen at silverstone and went on to win the race while Verstappen got nothing? No. That’s why the rules are inherently flawed and the stewards realized that. F1 is about ENTERTAINMENT...it’s not a charity. In the end, it was overruled because the stewards realized that sometimes racing is more important than technicalities. Hamilton got lucky at about 6 or 7 races this year...the championship should’ve never come to this

[@ChristianRodriguez-xv5qg]

Does anyone know why Perez retired? It was out of the blue

[@tonespeaks]

@@DreOneil Actually, that is incorrect, Blue flags are for all racers not just the lead ones. At some point Lewis had to pass those cars, to eliminate the need for Max to pass those cars isn't sporting or fair to the other drivers behind Max. Those cars that were allowed to pass, will finish ahead of the ones, that were not allowed to unlap themselves, therefore guaranteeing them not to be able to race for their position. While it is important that the lead cars not be impeded that also goes down the order. If Mercedes had known that the Lapped cars would be released they may have pitted Lewis. It was an unfair application of the rules and that is true... no one can question that. I just hope they find a just solution, because I would hate to see this go to Court. Because Max could lose the win if it did and then the World would be set on fire.

[@marcusjoe3618]

Masi put his thumb on the scale and singlehandedly decided who would be champion. Period. If finishing a race under green was the most important thing, Masi should have red flagged the race which would have setup a 3-4 lap sprint to the finish. Regardless of how competitive the season was, it was ultimately decided by the FIA and not by the drivers.

[@oldschool8330]

Bang on!

[@VNeto94]

It was decided by Red Bull putting soft tires on Verstappen.

[@AravindhDeiva]

​@@VNeto94 agreed mare 🤣🤣🤣

[@sticcbug]

FIA needs to clean their shit up, can’t put entertainment before the integrity of the sport. Its up to the teams, the drivers, and us fans to demand better

[@Plasticjesus504]

Seriously man, the FIA is pretty much a joke.

[@Eh_Siala_productions]

@@Plasticjesus504 i think u should shut up first and watch the race in a more closely depth and also read the FIA rule articles.

[@timothysullivan7433]

Fans demand racing and it is entertainment. I don't want to watch a parade every weekend.

[@RanjitSingh-em7lx]

It didn't make a difference. Even if all lapped cars had unlapes themselves the result would have been same. Only 3 of the 8 lapped cars stayed put. They could have unlapped themselves quickly.

[@Alex-tu9bh]

Ranjit Singh There wouldn’t have been any laps left, all lapped cars must un lap themselve and the safety cars comes in the following lap

[@golmaal7951]

Masi was torturing both RBs and Mercs at his own will through out the season. I believe both teams hate that man and they will work behind for his resignation.

[@jgee9160]

Masi is Horner mate in real life so don’t think he hates it mate 2+2=crashtappen win 😎

[@Ephimerous2006]

@@jgee9160 Cry more shamilton fan girl!

[@Ben-go1iq]

@@jgee9160 get a life

[@Hazen87]

That’s really a great sign that he’s been objective and that many calls went both ways. It’s just a testimate to how non-one sided his calls were and provide more legitimacy to his calls.

[@LongTimeAgoNL]

@@jgee9160 Interesting theory, but why would the FIA have decided SO FUCKING MUCH in to Mercedes/Hamilton's favour then? Both on and off track.

[@colehartel7206]

It should have been all lapped cars let through, or none at all. Max may be good, but he did not win this race on his own merit. Despite Masi's claims, his actions meant the championship was not decided on track at all, but rather by his manipulation.

[@stp147]

Could have been solved with a Red flag like IndyCar has been doing more recently to avoid finishing races behind the pace (safety) car. And as been pointed out plenty of times, that means a free tire (tyre) change for all.

[@khasmir666]

I totally agree, it was the first thing that came to my mind when I was watching the race: RED FLAG!!! With so few laps remaining you want to maximize the amount of racing laps.

[@Shuubox]

However, you do run the risk of having another crash on the restart, and with so few laps to go, what then ? FIA did make the right choice imo and worked with what they had, it's just that Max got lucky, cause the Merc was definitely faster, but yeah.

[@sabrinaEvo]

I only thought the same thing after the race finished. It would have been the most fair thing to give the two a few laps to shoot it out on fresh tires. I mean, it's not really a fair fight between new softs and 40+ lap hards. Maybe if they they didn't allow the cars to pass, that could have been fair.

[@jjjiljjjj]

@@sabrinaEvo Mercedes strategy failed because they didn't want to take any risks pitting at any stage of the race other than when he's far ahead.

[@jonathanstensberg]

Better to follow Indycar’s lead in letting the race finish under yellow if the race is going to finish under yellow. Contrived finishes slowly delegitimize the sport, and occasionally, you just get burned.

[@kreee1215]

My respect for Lewis and his dad has grown 10 fold. They handled this so well.

[@CITRUS--]

They’ve been dealing with this circus for a very long time now😂

[@jasonmendelli6023]

@@CITRUS-- I'd go with shower of c*nts but am sure your description is much closer to how the Hamilton family would conduct themselves in public 😂

[@AlistairMaxwell77]

he still has his 7 world championships ,knighthood and hundreds of millions of dollars so he is going to be ok.

[@auchayethenoo8249]

Like that time he said he was going to sell all of his petrol cars due to his concerns about climate change and was then spotted a year later still driving one. The guy is class personified.

[@sking2173]

I agree. I was surprised to see him congratulate Max as he did. Toto, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found - not even for interviews.

[@zakwan10]

I'm completely neutral as I think both Hamilton and Verstappen are both great drivers, but this is a completely absurd event, you can't change the rules on the fly, this turns F1 into something that is more staged than WWE.

[@Obi-WanKannabis]

> you can't change the rules on the fly They did in Bahrain, why not do it again. That race favoured Mercedes, this one didn't.

[@Spidehman]

@@Obi-WanKannabis Everyone still disliked the inconsistency there. Even the drivers, including Hamilton, who benefitted from it, said it was annoying and confusing.

[@XxmillerniaxX]

The rules were not changed, that decision was made inside the existing rules.

[@nickyjames1985]

In event of accident traffic management of any kind is needed to safely restart

[@banana-ui2qd]

Cope hamtard

[@BiTi3030]

I’ve been looking forward to this…

[@connor1424]

Honestly

[@lukewood2662]

And now let the comments section carnage begin lol

[@kwallace114]

Disgusting, and I mean your mom, and whole entire family tree!

[@geedee7632]

At the end of the day would the end result be the same if situation 😕 were in reverse order!! .. for Lewis.. against max loosing! The championship??.. OBVIOUSLY NO!! 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎 👎

[@thekoneill8]

Me too bro

[@chop600h2]

I found that the last minute change about the lapped cars ruined the race. It seemed like they were trying to forget about the regulations and just make sure the race ends was good for ratings

[@clashwithmoi8926]

That is their new directive. They want to make good money and get good ratings.

[@hectornecromancer5308]

They made a mistake by letting all lapped cars stuck behind. If they were unlapped right from the start, it wouldn't end up as it is

[@juangomez1704]

@@hectornecromancer5308they couldn’t. The crash needed to be completely cleaned

[@hectornecromancer5308]

@@juangomez1704 it's already clear to let the overlapped cars to unlap when he decided not to do it

[@aspect359]

​@@hectornecromancer5308no the track was only clear on lap 57 if I'm right so what really should have happened is that all the lapped cars would be let through then the race would have ended on the safety car on the last lap but masi decided for the race to be more entertaining instead of following the rules

[@alfredli6996]

Imagine being 15 seconds in front of your opponent with cars between them and losing to the safety car. Crazy

[@gianni_schicchi]

Imagine being a lap down then finishing P2 like in Imola for Hamilton. All season has been good and bad luck calls for both drivers.

[@unknown-jx5yt]

rigged!

[@skiran6316]

Ooh just like Baku

[@qg1235]

@@gianni_schicchi exactly, this wasn’t the only race with controversy. Imola, Silverstone, Hungary, the luck on those days was COMPLETELY on Hamilton’s side. Why did people not make such a fuss about Silverstone where Hamilton destroyed Max’s car, costing him new parts and a new engine and what’s worse, they gave him pretty much no penalty and brought out a red flag so he could change his front wing that day... Verstappen deserved this championship, this final race was not the only race where controversial stewarding decisions took place! Oh and by the way, Mercedes could have pitted, like Red Bull did. But they chose not to because they were scared to try and overtake Max! I’m not a fan of either driver by the way, just think Verstappen deserved it a bit more this season hehe

[@klr3218]

@@qg1235 he did not deserve this championship. He did not deserve this win. The faster and better driver should have won...that was Lewis.

[@helsinho2]

This is really unfortunate, for Max Verstappen who will likely lose his world championship title if this goes to an outside (objective) court, and for Lewis Hamilton who was simply robbed of the winning moment by a race director who caved to Christian Horner's pressure. 48.13 follows 48.12 and clearly does not have overriding power. It's what the race director is supposed to communicate the lap after all lapped cars have unlapped. 48.13, safety car in this lap, was simply erroneously called by the race director. And to the 15.3 exception that the race director controls the use of the safety car and can, therefore, override the 48.xx regulations, yes that's true BUT for safety purposes, eg. if a car crashes on the lap where the race director rightly has called safety car in. It's unprecedented that this is done for accelerating a restart in violation with 48.xx rules.

[@guteng9884]

Horner did not pressure. Micheal Massi just wanted to stage a show. And they probably won't strip verstappen of his title, it's just to much of a controversy. It opens the door to the contest of SOOO many bad decisions by the FIA that advantaged Mercedes

[@carls-95]

The appeal would never hold up in court. The rules are too vague to form a conclusion either way.

[@rjpm92]

@@guteng9884 I mean telling the race director "We only need one racing lap" and the race director subsequently reversing his decision to comply certainly sounds like pressure to me. Whether it had an influence in the decision is another matter, but it's still pressure.

[@lukebrands]

" yes that's true BUT for safety purposes". Where does it say that in the regulations? It doesn't. You[re making that up. Even if the race had been continued on a different path it's impossible to guess what would have or could have happened. I'm not saying i'm a big time lawyer. But as someone with a law degree I don't see how they can take the championship title away from him.

[@jackdowse1246]

Max will keep the title because it’s not his fault - why should red bull be punished for FIA stupidity. It should of been Lewis’s title, but you can’t punish the drivers for just doing their jobs

[@filipeviola]

Some things need change, - red flag when deployed should not allow tire change . - if a safety car is deployed on the last 5 laps of the race, the race should be red flagged. - communication between teams and race director during the event should not be allowed. All protests can be discussed after the race / practice or qualifying.

[@gianni_schicchi]

I'm a max fan and I agree with these changes. It allows too much "luck" to decide key parts of a race. I'm ok with some luck in the draw, but the red flag tire changes and end of race safety cars really mess up an entire race of well played strategy with a coin flip. Doesn't seem fair to anyone involved. That being said, Max had a lot of losses in the coin flips this season too, so I think this season ended with the better driver/team strategy overall. Max had a DNF more than Lewis and it's debatable who's fault that was, it was not easy for Max to be tied, let alone win by the end.

[@panagiotisvitas4697]

Why change the rules if rules can be ignored completely at Massis will?

[@IIGrayfoxII]

When behind the SC, laps are not counted. Now you can say Vehicles are fuelled to X How about we bring back refuelling?

[@griffinfaulkner3514]

@@panagiotisvitas4697 The problem with the rules as they are right now is there's too much wiggle room on what the race director can do, particularly in situations like this. The rules need to be incredibly prescriptive at this point, because F1 cannot afford to have another season more or less ruined what was shaping up to be an incredible season.

[@XxmillerniaxX]

You forgot to add if Lewis is winning all the other teams are not allowed to pass him. Thankfully this season is over, hopefully, all the crybaby fans decide to never watch F1 again or comment on it. I don't care what team they are fans of.

[@ianh3365]

Whether you like the decision Masi made or not, his decisions this year have been far too inconsistent and indecisive. All neatly summed up with his 'no they cant overtake, err, yes they can overtake' whilst being manipulated by the two team bosses on the blower.

[@oldschool8330]

And we know which team bosses he was manipulated by. Horner and Wheatley, then he even quoted one of them “we went car racing toto” Masi is a complete and utter fool.

[@hectornecromancer5308]

@@oldschool8330 Toto as well. And tbh, Horner wouldn't play the same game had Toto not doing it too

[@quigglyz]

Most of his decisions favored Lewis. You weren’t crying then, were you??

[@jcheroko7444]

Can always count on you guys to make a video explaining everything

[@michaeljefferson493]

I will remember this season for the race director and stewarding inconsistency. It was an amazing season and I have been loving the end of the season but this finish was not right. I really didn’t care who won but I wanted the racing to decide and not the race director making up rules on the fly to ensure the Netflix fans are entertained.

[@blakebarone1809]

So if Latifi didn’t crash, and Lewis won, the racing would decide the championship. Once Latifi crashed, and his car was safely cleared with one lap left, what did you think would’ve been correct??

[@playerone6995]

@@blakebarone1809 Safety car until end of last lap. Alternatively they could have just suspended the race (red flag) and then restarted, which would have been easy, simple and fair.

[@jordanfrancis129]

@@playerone6995 I thought it should have being red flagged but if the track is clear why tf is the safety car gonna stay out to the conclusion of the last race of the season....like wtf

[@timlolxP]

@@jordanfrancis129 Bc you have to follow the rules and not make your own up to get an artificial battle.

[@chriscollins550]

@@blakebarone1809 should of followed the rules and not let 5 car's unlap them self's. Or just finished under safety car. Now we got merc going to court in France and Ross Brawn f1 managing director has also called to have a meeting with masi and is considering over turning masi. Taking back the race 3 laps and passing the win to Mercedes

[@purestdj]

It has been a great season, the racing, engineering, teamwork, rivalries and dare I say it FIA wrangling, it’s all part of the sport. However I don’t think the team should have direct access to the race director in the way they do, there needs to be limits.

[@DaxSports1]

Yeah I only started casually watching f1 but having direct access to the guy who pretty much makes up the rules is insane, I couldn't imagine this in other sports. Lmao.

[@TH3ENGLIISHDEVIL]

Yeah hearing wolf and horner pleading with the race director was a bit strange.

[@heimatahall8630]

Just for the record, Hamilton was laying the smack down on Vestapen the entire race. If it wasn’t for the crash, the fresh tires, and unlapping the cars, Hamilton was clearly the better driver that day. It was obvious with fresh tires and all the help from the FIA that red bull was gona win the final lap. Tainted championship for sure.

[@Saintwolvinn]

Not as tainted as the championship win Lewis got in 2008. I'm sorry to tell you this man, but Verstappen's performance considering the situation and the slower car was objectively superior to Lewis'. Lewis may have deserved the race, but not the title. Max's title is barely tainted when you look at how Senna, Hamilton, and Schumacher got some of theirs.

[@shuddafukkup]

@@Saintwolvinnsorry to tell you this man, but Verstappen was very crash happy with other cars throughout 2021, noticeably Saudi Arabia. So yes, tainted Championship for sure. ‘22 and ‘23 are some of the most dominant championships any one driver has one, so there’s that

[@myfriendniko]

@@Saintwolvinn I find it amazing that the last resort argument is always 2008. Please enlight me on how a FIA decision decided the 2008 interlagos gp. 21 AD was a collosal failure of racing rules. 08' was a overtake on the last lap. And even if you mention the whole renault scandal, that still makes AD 21 a scandal too, maybe even worse. It's a shame that people can't recongnize a day light robbery in front of them. And before anyone calls me a ham fan, I've been watching this sport longer that most of are alive, trust me. And on top of that Im a brazillian Ferrari fan, I cried on 08', but still doesnt mean I think less of ham first chip, in contrast we have a a decider that was admittedly manipulated by the FIA during the race. Make it make sense

[@tbicks2822]

@@Saintwolvinn Never understood the 'Max deserved the title over Lewis' angle. They came in to the last race having had a basically completely even season. Ultimately, they both deserved a *chance* to win the title by winning the final race. If you accept Lewis deserved the race, you effectively accept that he deserved the title.

[@MarokPL]

​@@tbicks2822if max finished second at silverstone or won baku he would ve won it easily by just finishing second

[@janhansen3753]

What is not mentioned. Before Masi's brainfart Daniel Ricciardo was less then a second from 1 point, and less then two seconds from 7 points. After he was 27 seconds behind. Where in the sporting code does it state that Michael Masi can use the safety car in such an extremely unsportsmanlike way? Masi had tunnelvision and lost all control of the situation when Horner told him to get rid of the 5 cars.

[@nickmullen2830]

He forgot about Ocon last weekend. His situational awareness with pressure leaves a lot to be desired.

[@LeCharles07]

And Honer kept bitching about Toto lobbying the officials... Smh

[@button4boy]

Yeah, and Sainz, who finished P3 in the end, had lapped cars in front of him who weren't allowed to unlap themselves, so it meant he couldn't also challenge Verstappen or Hamilton at the front to potentially get a win himself!

[@cidiracing7481]

It had 0 impact on the championship standings for Ricciardo who finished 44 points behind Leclerc. Neither did it impact the championship standing of Stroll or Schumacher by not having them unlap themselves or Sainz championship standing. Let's be honest, a lot of people that take issue with the 5 cars unlaping themselves so they don't get in the way of the championship fight would have had no issue with it if the shoe was on the other foot. The only difference is that Horner didn't roll up with a fucking lawyer altough they would have needed one after Hamilton did not get a deserved reprimand for his free practice antics and got away with overtaking off track and cutting a substantial part of the track.

[@demolitionbmxd]

100%. It was purely done for entertainment and caving under pressure by RB. Max did not win a championship today with his driving but by being handed the title by Masi. As a Dutchman, I love Max, but this finale was disastrous and undeserved.

[@jt80995]

The intervention by the race director handed a clear advantage to one team over the other. If he wanted it to be fair he should've RED FLAGGED it for it to be a fair shoot out for the last laps.

[@nickmullen2830]

You only red flag if the track is unsafe, not to setup a showdown.

[@jt80995]

@@nickmullen2830 he did intervene to set up a show down. Then intervene in a way that is fair to both teams. That's my point.

[@pyRoy6]

@@nickmullen2830 I was thinking it would normally have been inappropriate, but given the scenario that played out, all other decisions heavily favoured one driver or another. If the justification is that the race direction has discretion, then that might be the type of discretion he should have used.

[@titancheat]

@@jt80995 he didn't tell Mercedes not to pit Lewis. It's not the fias job to fix it for them. Mercedes gambled wrong. That's racing. Just ask lando

[@nickmullen2830]

The hundreds of safety car situations over the years set the precedent of how parties should have acted and have historically affected numerous results but thats always been the luck of the draw and within the rules of the sport. To change the rules for one race is race fixing and incompetence.

[@the.colonel2287]

today’s race has discredited the FIA credibility to the sport

[@dominicfrank77]

1000% RedBull got beat in the big money prize and FIA wanted RB and MAX for the DC for the American audience which is just LOST. SHAM!

[@dabz3432]

Indeed, some things need to be honored.

[@wingracer1614]

Last week discredited them. This week was all as normal.

[@flinflon1936]

my lasting memory of this season will be that 'let them race' is a bad approach. I have watched F1 for 40 years, and next to Schumacher's antics in 96 & 97 this leaves the worst taste possible. If this is what F1 will be in the future, I will not continue to be a fan.

[@joaoreis3290]

@@peter3334floyd here we go. Silverstone hás nothing to do with this shit. They were racing and collided. Here it was a fucking shit show made by FIA. It feels like a movie, i want to watch a sport.

[@rodrozil6544]

Cry😂 nobody cares

[@mich722]

Bye.

[@drugoviic]

F1 honestly lost its taste for good, now its just watching cars run around the track nothing spectacular

[@Reverez]

Poor Max. Winning his first WDC in these circumstances. He deserves bettter, we as fans deserve better. FIA, you've ruined what should be a very special championship. Max's first WDC will always be tarnished because of it, lets not even start on how Mercedes and Lewis feel having a title stolen. FIA you've messed up

[@MIB_95]

Yeah agreed… Especially since overall he really did deserve the championship. It wasn’t some fluke, he was faster most of the season with some bad luck DNFs making the fight this close in the end. Lewis deserves the win today, but I hope people will look back on the season and remember how well Max drove and how deserving he was of the title. Either way, this season was nuts, so amazing to see two different teams being this close to each other, even though the last few races were very badly handled by the FIA and Max had one to many moments at the end here where he was stepping over the line in terms of aggressiveness.

[@timothysullivan7433]

Max won end of story. Red Bull made the correct call Mercedes did not.

[@Marqk-]

Better to win while racing than lose under safety car,

[@Playtechy]

@@timothysullivan7433 Hamilton and Mercedes were faster all race. Had the safety car been handled the same as it had been every other race - Hamilton would of won. It was the Race Director changing the rules and regulations in the heat of the moment is what made Max win. I'm a Max fan, I wanted him to win. But he would never of won without the Safety Car and following blurring of the rules by Masi.

[@Reverez]

@@timothysullivan7433 bad take.

[@enragedpanda1]

Why do I feel they're still going be arguing this in court by pre-season testing starts lmao

[@travisfubu9053]

Bec they will, that decision at the end it was laughable

[@yt.personal.identification]

Because Toto is an entitled whiner.

[@Boo-jk3ii]

@@yt.personal.identification Sorry but the only one entitled is Red Bull and everyone in the team. Always have been since they fell off the top and have whined and cried over and over again about leaving the sport if they don't get changes they want.

[@eddiel7635]

Will go to CAS, could take 10 months

[@bartonez123]

Even if they go the CAS route, best outcome for Mercedes is the result is wiped, giving Max the championship regardless. So it won't really matter anyway.

[@TomDelmonte]

When the steward’s decision favors one team/driver over the other, and changes the conditions under which the race was mostly run, it does lead us question if they were trying to follow the rules or bend them to favor one team over the other.

[@carlosmasterguy]

It may or may not be the case, but it certainly felt so when we were watching the race.

[@DeletedScenes312]

Following the rules to the letter would have meant allowing the lapped cars through at least a lap earlier, with the SC ending at the same time it did. Yes, it was a farce, but you also don't want to see a race director leaving a SC out longer than it's needed, for no good reason. All that does it add bias in the opposite direction. For me, Lewis deserved the win as a driver, but his team let him down with two bad strategy calls.

[@mgsmk92]

@@DeletedScenes312 I'm struggling with people mentioning 2 bad strategy calls... In both cases, Lewis loses track position. In the VSC, this could be argued that he would have caught the time back up, but clearly he had the pace in the car to keep Verstappen at bay. We did not say "that was a bad call" on lap 50, did we? In the second scenario, 6 laps from the end, he would have given max track position (Max would have stayed out 100%). 6 laps from the end, do you take the risk that the race restarts and you have enough time to pass? As a percentage game you 100% stay out. Trying to say "in hindsight, they should have pitted on 1 or both occasions" is just silly. In both cases, their decision was justified. And if they followed the safety car procedure, it either ended behind the safety car or Max has 5 cars in the way, so they have it nailed on. Diviners aren't in the organisational structure of a team. How are they meant to predict Masi's course of action when it's unprecedented. The strategy was fine, and Red Bull didn't have to take any risks all race. Just throw on new tyres and see what sticks. They were nowhere anyway.

[@peterthermocline]

Absolutely Tom, and for the whole World to see!!!! FIA stands to lose a lot more if they continue down this path..... 6 of my friends have given up watching F1 next season, NO FAIR PLAY.

[@ruzaroos]

@@mgsmk92 Yep all because VB77 was playing with the mid-field instead of being where he should be. Max got 2 free pit stops because VB77 was out of position.

[@jogabneymar4994]

In the last lap, why were the 4 lapped cars between Verstappen and Hamilton removed so they had a one on one battle? And why were the cars likewise not removed between Verstappen(P2) and Sainz(P3)? That had as consequence that Verstappen had one lap to battle Lewis on new softs vs 40+ lap old hard tires, while not having to worry about Sainz in the back since there are two lapped cars in between.

[@Peterpan9760]

I miss Charlie Whiting. Since his passing the rulebook of Formula 1 has been ignored or not understood by the stewards and Micheal Massi. I don't get how this race a rule gets applied and the next race the rule gets ignored. There is no consistency in Formula 1 any more. These days you do something on track and hope and pray Massi understands or know about the rule that needs to be implemented. Congrats to Max but I must warn him and Lewis. Next year both of them are facing George Russel in a Mercedes. Cant wait for that.

[@BigBadLoneWolf]

Also ALL cars have to unlap themselves, not just the cars between the first 2 drivers, and after they have passed, then the safety car comes in at the end of the next lap, not the same lap

[@mjrazer6351]

Not just George you have lando,leclerc,sainz to contend with next year I can not wait for next season with the new ground effect cars

[@heavNz]

@@BigBadLoneWolf dude didnt even watch the video and comments

[@Scou73r]

@@BigBadLoneWolf That is not correct. The only reason lapped cars need to unlap themselves is to remove themselves from interfering with the race leaders battles. Also, as soon as they crossed the line onto the final lap their race would have been over.

[@poniatowski3547]

@@BigBadLoneWolf no ANY does not mean ALL. its is why in legal documents it is expressed as 'any or all' when conveying the choice of being able to select everyone or someone.

[@SHEEPeros]

Happy for Max to join the pantheon he’s been stellar this season. The restart should have been handled differently though. Martin Brundle mentioned in commentary he and Karun discussed the exact turn 14 incident with Massi on Saturday night, and his plan was not to bring out red flag. Herein lies the problem. What should have happened is this: Massi sees race could end behind safety car, he checks if after removing stricken Williams, there will be time for all lapped cars to unlap themselves as the procedure dictates. It’s a close call. He brings red flag out to neutralise the race and give fans last few laps of racing with everyone on fresh tyres. That would remove any controversy from procedures’ standpoint. Massi’s comment to Toto saying “this is motoracing” is flawed, because it was a desperate attempt to go racing after a very controversial though apparently legal decision to just let the 5 cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to unlap themselves. I don’t envy Michael’s position - it must be impossible making quick decisions with the world watching. At the same time, if the priority is racing to the extent where we remove all obstacles between the two pratagonists, he should have removed the tyre factor too by brining out the red flag.

[@Almost_Ginger]

I had the same thoughts on Sunday. Should of red flagged as soon as the accident happened.

[@bertobertoberto3]

Thank you, that’s it. This is an empty victory

[@johntinning938]

It wasn't just the tire situation either. Although that was the major difference maker, because they didn't clear the other cars Max also had no challenge from Sainz behind to worry about so could just go gung-ho. He's essentially made a decision that all other cars get out of the way, we want a race between the two champ contenders. There's no caveat in the rules to give advantages to those at the top of the standings, he's given an unfair advantage to 1 single team.

[@jmthebigman]

Granted it would have been more fair for this race, one then could argue why it wasnt done other races where then Lewis benefited from a safety car. The safety car regulations need an overhaul

[@PeachBarrel]

If a red flag comes out after 75% race distance the race is over as per the rules, why does nobody remember this?

[@alanngli]

I wish part of the video was dedicated to how well the Hamilton family took the loss. Exceptional class displayed there worthy of a at least 7 time world champion.

[@hammer-r]

Well he won a couple by luck. He should be class with 7 in his pocket. Things can’t always go your way. But yet he whines all the time in races. While he is the best, his whining does not show class.

[@jesuslozano508]

Can’t say the same thing about Max!

[@jamesmiddleton8335]

I imagine Hamilton's family had come to terms with lewis not winning this year a while ago, before Silverstone, Hungary and Baku, verstappen was apsolutely running away with the title, mercedes had planned to stop development on the car, in the back of Lewis' mind this was not his title to win, a streak of bad luck for verstappen, pretty good consistent driving from lewis and the continued development of the car put him back into the battle.

[@Gucc111]

Yeah, it was as classy a response as you can hope for in that situation. Really shows how much he's grown since entering F1.

[@janematthews9087]

@@jesuslozano508 He gets to be whiny baby this year because he didn't have a cup yet. Now he has, and now he can't. Let's see if the attitude persist next season.

[@ValBalza]

Bottom line, Max may deserve the championship, but surely not that last race.

[@Roeland666]

Max got the short end of the stick all season. Its only fair it balances out.

[@ValBalza]

​@@Roeland666 It is not the job of the Stewarts to "balance things out" in the last lap of the last race by bending the rules for the sake of the show. I'm a diehard McLaren fan, and I won't root for other teams, but it was very easy to see that Lewis was absolutely dominant for 57 laps, and the only reason he lost the race was because the Stewarts and Race director intervention, that is not fair.

[@koendekortdk2198]

@Jdog cope harder

[@lipokyanger7685]

Given that Mercedes had a lot of race decisions going their way on top of Lewis having an incredibly fast car, Verstappen deservedly won the title.

[@itisyaboy_6656]

@Jdog Yeah, Hamilton will win more 4 championships in a row

[@cloudk2088]

Michael Masi and the FIA are a disgrace this season, and this was the nail in the coffin for some after seeing how Masi conducted the last 5 laps of this race. I feel ashamed for all the people I've told to give F1 a shot the past couple years, and they then had to watch that farcical last lap conjured up by Masi. His actions bring the sport into disrepute, and is setting a precedent that F1 isn't about the best driver and team winning on the day, but rather putting entertainment and showmanship above skill. I suppose I shouldn't expect less considering it's what's accepted and prioritized in today's hollow world. Max deserved to be Champion there is no argument, but the way FIA and Masi conducted this has put a smear on the sport. Masi needs to step down, and the FIA need to hammer out the damn rules for the sake of every competitor on future F1 grids. If it keeps going like this F1 will lose viewers, lose money, and worst of all people are going to get hurt.

[@unknown-jx5yt]

he didnt deserve to be champion. Lewis did. Max was gifted this race.

[@pigmoonk2545]

Crying again

[@PeterbFree]

Watch the video before commenting. Tyre choice is also part of the skill of the sport and the decision to stop and change or not has consequences. RB chose to stop while Mercedes chose not to. If the race restarted at all after that Mercedes were going to be on old worn tyres. Such is the sort of F1, live with it

[@LSchelvin71]

@@unknown-jx5yt so, 2008 also gifted ??

[@0megalul309]

@@unknown-jx5yt Max was gifted like Hamilton in 208 duh.

[@shaikhammad8104]

2 points: 1. The championship was played by FIA's inconsistency rather than drivers 2. Max deserved to win the title, but at the same time, Lewis didn't deserve to loose the way he did.

[@ax2643]

There is no such thing as "deserved". Its participation trophy nonsense

[@joshuarichard2509]

Deserved? By what metric? They were even in points. Lewis was very dominant the last bit of the season, putting him dead even going into this race. Then Lewis led the entire race till it was stolen from him by a crazy and inconsistent decision. This was a farce of a race. That last lap should have never happened.

[@mafiousbj]

@@joshuarichard2509 Bottas taking out Verstappen in Hungary and Lewis doing the same in Silverstone are direct instances of clashes with Mercs making Verstappen score zero points (while they also score, unlike Monza). So taking those incidents out and the puncture in Baku he would have arrived 20-30 points clear of Ham to this race. So yeah, on track he deserved it more than a late season recovery by the Mercs. Of course weak stewardship all season long turned this into a farce for sure.

[@daviddacosta1673]

@@joshuarichard2509 Laps led and Pole positions.

[@travisfubu9053]

It can't be both max didn't deserve to win the title he was simply not good enough today to catch up with Hamilton and wouldn't have won without race control not following their own rules

[@phaserra]

I started watching because I really liked Perez after his first victory, and so I wanted to see how well he would do, but I'd be lying if said I didn't get caught in the drama, especially after Silverstone..

[@themightyant.]

8:09 “From a neutrals perspective it doesn’t get much better than a last lap pass for the championship” BALLS! So many neutrals disappointed by the abandonment of sporting integrity for the sake of entertainment. - A Danny Ricciardo fan P.S. Danny had it 100% right on his radio at the end of the race. “That was F*cked up!”

[@bassmunk]

Masi needs a "secretary", some one to screen calls during a safety car so he can make his decisions in peace and undistracted. I can see it now, "Who is it? Ya, take a message, I'm not talking to him right now." lol

[@JoePCool14]

But then we would just have more "Michael, I've just sent you an email!"

[@diegomartinmartindiego7829]

" Thank you for contacting the race director , we are busy at the moment coming out with new rules please leave a message , we LL get back to you shortly or after the race " " Michael pick up it's me Toto . I know you there arrrrrrghhhh . I sent you an email ( super long , you might need two computers ) , Instagram , twitter Get back to me " I sent you a letter too . Just in case ... " Hello Michael it's me Christian everything it's good , Toto just called me and said to disregard his message, it was about the secret Santa and Xmas party , oh and the email it's spam. " You are busy . Leave you alone .

[@B3ansGuy]

If the positions were reversed and it was Lewis being allowed to have a go at Max on fresher tires, Red Bull would be equally furious at how badly it was mismanaged. I don't think Max was at fault, in F1 as a driver you just take whatever opportunity is given and Max did exactly that. And sure, FIA was in a tough spot with a safety car restart with so few laps left but imo if you're going to do something, either let ALL the lapped cars through or none at all. Their half measure can very easily be interpreted as favoring a driver/situation and was disappointing to see, especially in a season full of their missteps. At the very least I hope they get their act together before the next season and have clearly written rules in place on how to handle all the contentious situations we've seen this year, because it's honestly looked like they were just making it up as they went along and it marred what was otherwise an incredible season

[@tomhadders9511]

As you say it’s not the drivers or teams fault which is unfair on them. But the FIA and race director can’t just pick and choose what rules to enforce or manipulate them to fit the situation. Soo bad 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@expatliferealspain1175]

If Lewis had changed tyres and was behind max they would have finished behind the safety car FIA agenda at play Masi playing god again should be interesting when it goes to court

[@njclondon2009]

I'm not so sure why Mercedes were so fixated on track position, the data must have told them that fresh tyres were far more important. Clearly they didn't back themselves to get the job done if Max stayed out and Lewis pitted, but Max passed him easily in the end and it was clear Mercedes made the wrong call. I think Toto is probably as angry with himself as he is Masi.

[@tomm9716]

@@njclondon2009 If Merc pitted and gave up track position, RB would not have pitted a second time for softs and would have taken the lead. In this scenario, would Massi have allowed the race to finish under SC? We'll never know but the fact that the rules were bent to give Max a clear advantage indicates there was a real bias and a desire for Max to win from the FIA. Either way if Merc would have pitted and the race had finished under a SC (which was a real possibility regardless of bias, it would have only been a case of it taking another minute or so to clear latifi's car), it would be considered one of the biggest own goals in F1 history

[@kevinpils4716]

@@njclondon2009 Track position is basically everything against Verstappen. Look at how he defends and overtakes, its always a risk for the other driver. Mercedes didn't want to risk that

[@andresilvasophisma]

First of all, Lando fan here. Second, the decision to let only five cars unlap themselves makes zero sense. Those cars were fighting for position with other cars in the same lap, the cars behind Max didn't get the chance to fight for position with the ones in front after the safety car. Dani Ric was between Max and Sainz, if he also unlaped himself he could fight for position with Max, but he didn't get that chance. It's like this was engineered to get Max another chance at the title. In the previous race we got three red flags which allowed him to get closer to Hamilton everytime. I know Max fans are happy but, if this is the new trend in F1, a lot of people are going to quit this sport. Cheers.

[@Savant_Ananya]

maFIA

[@gianni_schicchi]

FWIW, Alonso was one of those lapped cars, and when his team radio said Max would be behind him at first, he said they should let Max catch up and them pass around.

[@PapiDoss]

Thank you! Well said!

[@jogabneymar4994]

Michael Masi has always said that ‘let the racing continue’ would be his slogan for F1. I also understand that he wanted to have one last lap of racing before the crowning of the champion. I also understand him clearing all lapped cars between Lewis and Verstappen so they would have one 1 vs 1 last lap battle. But what I will never accept is how the rules were bend and shaped in his weird way. Michael Masi let all lapped cars overtake between Hamilton(P1) and Verstappen(P2) meaning Verstappen had nobody between him and Hamilton. Likewise, all lapped cars between Verstappen(P2) and Sainz(P3) should be able to overtake but they were denied. So at the last lap Verstappen never had to worry about Sainz because of the two lapped cars in between. That is not correct in any way. What happened here is that the racing directors decided that Sainz was not allowed to fight for a podium/battle Verstappen, while Max had all cars between him and Hamilton cleared. Knowing damn well that Hamilton was on 40+ lap old hard tires and Verstappen on fresh softs. In no way that is fair. This is the kind of robbery Chelsea experienced in the Champions league 2009 vs FC Barcelona. I don’t want Max to have his championship taken away, because he raced fair! This was all Masi’s fault. And to me, Lewis deserves a championship too. Has there never been a season with two champions? Then this is the first time it should happen!

[@edictalleba1297]

Your right

[@Roeland666]

Masi has the final say on everything safety car related, according to FIA rules.

[@Choopremo]

Latifi will always be remembered on this race, not because of his racing skills obviously

[@playerone6995]

He's the Glock of 2021. In fact, worse than Glock, since all Glock did was stay out on the track instead of changing tyres, while Latifi actually crashed.

[@PixieLavender]

Honestly, in all of this, I have actually forgotten about Latifi. Because that's motor racing (i.e he crashed) unless this is 2008 Singapore all over again (then it is not motor racing). For me, it is about how only the five lapped drivers between Lewis and Max were told to unlap themselves. Why wasn't Carlos given a fair chance to challenge Max and Lewis? Carlos had a backmarker Infront of him. The last lap was not motor racing but clear manipulation of deciding the WDC. F1 is about drivers fighting each other and it just so happens that the last race is the title decider. This factor shouldn't have been the other way around. Even Ricardo and Stroll were confused at the end. If I were Ferrari and the other teams (who didn't get a chance to unlap themselves), I'd be joining Mercedes in the appeal process.

[@bhavzm9035]

Actually it was Mick Schumacher that big brained that whole idea. He forced Latifi into the dirty part of the track, which caused him to crash which brought out the safety car that cost Hamilton the win that would overtake schumacher for most world championships. Mick made sure he's dads record stays put for another year. Legend.

[@fazzykhan273]

@@bhavzm9035 lol it's not only his dad's record...it's a joint record 😑

[@carls-95]

When Toto told Massi not to bring out a full safety car when the VSC was out. I knew all gloves were off, and the rules were out the window.

[@MaxFeken]

Yeah, clearly the line was crossed at that point.

[@szymixxf1191]

I think he said that as a joke lmal

[@tonlit4640]

@@szymixxf1191 Keep dreaming.

[@carls-95]

@@MaxFeken you know what i mean

[@theadventuresoft-cam1528]

Massi talking about not wanting a race to end under a safety car like he didnt make the field drive behind the safety car for a couple laps just to count it as a race and award half points earlier this year.

[@timothysullivan7433]

Safety issue

[@dajag6846]

And there was Silverstone and Hungary!

[@xmun2450]

Good point , supporting even more how he is a puppet of the commercial outcomes of liberty media

[@1sim2clo]

How about two completely different situations ?

[@zeezmusic7245]

Completely different situation and I think couldn’t be more opposite

[@KvnDWr]

Thanks for this video… I never watch F1 but this dramatic ending / controversy have introduced me to the sport

[@stephenwray4950]

This season is going to be remembered for inconsistent and confusing Stewarding decisions. Something needs to change.

[@escolopendrapower]

There are many things should change in f1 and I would say you focus too much in race direction, what about not having secondary teams as Ferrari. RED BULL and MERCEDES HAVE?

[@XxmillerniaxX]

@@escolopendrapower Or meaningful penalties for replacing Power Units over the 3 allowed. When you are replacing power units because you know you will make up the penalties even though there was technically nothing wrong with the old Pu, and in fact swapping back to that PU for the following race.....Or penalizing Teams that try and influence Race Control during the race...Or teams that would rather air their grievances in the media instead of race control..

[@hwss4]

Finally i found a comment section where people discuss relatively objective. We all love this sport and i think we can agree that it's sad it ended like this and the fia needs to change something. Both drivers deserved the title and we had an amazing season!

[@eddiel7635]

Nope, the horse has already bolted and F1 has lost a lot of fans and credibility over this.

[@animalcookie]

​@@eddiel7635 Yep. Obviously the wound is raw for a lot of people but I too am wondering if I will watch F1 in the future. As a lifelong sports fan I cannot ever remember a time when my reason for turning away from a sport I thoroughly enjoyed and avidly followed was jeopardized by the incompetence of the officials.

[@FirstLast-ur6xt]

@@eddiel7635 F1 has gained A LOT more fans than it lost.

[@dixon_est]

Fact is, that in regular race, LH would have won the title easily. He was so far ahead, that MV should have taken almost second a lap away from LH, to get close enough to attack. That was pretty much impossible considering, that MV was only 0,2 sec per lap faster. Now the intent of everybody is basically, that judges or race director's decision should not declare race winner, but the winner should be found in regular race. But race director decision was exactly what handled the victory to MV. Thus race director effectively decided signle handedly the world champion. And this is deeply wrong.

[@AngryPrawn]

@Keichi Tsutsiya I get it, you're glad it happened to the guy you don't like. But try to think about the bigger picture. Shit like this can happen to any driver if it's allowed to continue, even the ones who you happen be a fan of.

[@dylandebono7503]

Couldn't be summed up in better words

[@tptviper]

@@AngryPrawn serious question, if it could happen to any other driver, wouldn’t that make it fair?

[@zeronine-eightyfour]

The fact is, if Hamilton didnt punt of Verstappen, if Bottas didnt punt of Verstappen. Verstappen would have won a couple of races ago. The fact that competitors arent punished enough for eliminating their competitors shouldnt be checked as well. It was Mercedes their mistake not to give Hamilton new tyres.

[@Dildos4Africa]

@@tptviper just because something unfair can happen to anyone, doesn't make it fair

[@TheXtrafresh]

I will remember this season as the proof that we need gravelpits instead of runoff areas.

[@darrenjackson813]

Problem with Gravel Pits is that if your the one being pushed off, then your race is ended and the other guy gets a 5/10 second penality.

[@TheXtrafresh]

@@darrenjackson813 it means you will hit the brake pedal, yield the position, and fight again next corner.

[@darrenjackson813]

@@TheXtrafresh but then its still allowing other drivers to use "you yield or you crash" even if by right it was their corner. Or you have Abu Dhabi lap 1. If Lewis can't use the run off the one place he's going is into the side of max.

[@TheXtrafresh]

@@darrenjackson813 nonsense, he has a brake pedal. The "yield or crash" thing is called aggressive driving, and it makes the sport exciting. Maybe look at some Senna tapes as a reference.

[@ishqiahmed4315]

@@TheXtrafresh no but that warrants unfair and dirty driving, which is not wanted either, there is a difference between aggresive and dirty, two examples, spain and lap 1 abu dhabi. Spain max was perfectly alongside, didnt run deep or anything like that, perfect divebomb which lewis had to back out on, was aggresive but fair. Abu Dhabi, he dives it and he goes way too deep, he actually nearly went past the white lines if you look closely, at that point where is lewis meant to go, if he kept turning they would crash, and secondly hamilton took the normal racing line, there was no need to defend from verstappen if he is that far back, and also there are other cars which make manoeuvres like verstappen did but they do it a lot cleaner compared to his

[@cytramon3882]

Even as a Red Bull fan, I was so mad when all this happened at the very end. Still happy about the victory, but it shouldn't have ended like this. FIA needs to fix things, not break them over and over again. Although the decisions throughout the entire season were not favoring any driver in particular, the sole inconsistency of it was just infuriating sometimes. With that said, still an amazing season and I'm really glad this was the one that brought my attention back to this amazing sports!

[@travisfubu9053]

They basically tainted the title with controversy. Masi should have never been a race director

[@dominicviner6619]

As a redbull fan… Jeezus nobody cares man that doesn’t help your point I can’t stand when people say this liek how do I know your not full of it

[@blue04mx53]

I'm a huge Hamilton fan and like you, I agree it was a weird ending. But, I'm also so glad that the protest was over-ruled. It would have been cruel to take the championship away. Again even as a huge fan of Sir Lewis I thought he should have had to give that position back.

[@noketawanpa183]

You a Hamilton fan lol

[@stevewise1656]

I agree! Had this been Max robbed it would've been wrong as well.

[@Nic_at_Nighttime]

McLaren fan here... It's a real shame the FIA made such a mess of an entertaining season. I don't blame either team for feeling the way they do and there is a prevailing worry I have that with Liberty owning F1 - we'll continue to see a push to the ever so American idea of parity in the sport.

[@SlyGuyJay]

Parity isn’t an American idea, it’s a communist idea

[@LeCharles07]

American here, I've been a long time fan but I don't know if I can watch next season unless something major changes. That last lap was a fucking joke, it wasn't entertaining at all. The only really entertaining thing was Perez backing Hamilton into Verstappen. Changing the rules mid race for a bit of action with an entirely predictable result is not entertaining, it's a farce.

[@teemeaux3830]

@@LeCharles07 this whole thing is a farce

[@toddcancompute]

@@LeCharles07 what rule was changed?

[@joshbooth9772]

@@toddcancompute Give me an example of another time only a few lapped cars were allowed to pass, and the restart happened on the same lap where they were unlapping.

[@fun364]

The best thing I heard was that if Massi really wanted an exciting end he would've red flagged the race so both contenders could finish the race on fresh rubber.

[@aadi1806]

yes he said this ws a motor race where redbull had fresh soft tires and lewis had 40 laps old tires i cant understand how this is a motor race with this clear advantage

[@vishalhemraj9191]

Could of, should of... It's very easy to look into hindsight... Everyone seems to be blaming Masi but he's also human after all. It's easy to look back and say he should of done this,he had pressure and just moments to sort all these things out in real time.

[@Bot_967]

@@aadi1806 this

[@renatatostada3318]

​@@vishalhemraj9191 Yeah i mean everyone's human and makes mistakes, but at what point are we allowed to stop attributing a person's or group's mistakes to the fact that they're human? how many mistakes is a person or organization allowed to make before we're allowed to criticize them, o arbiter of discourse? The stewards and Masi have been so wildly inconsistent on a race to race basis all season. I still haven't forgotten about Turkey qualifying last year, when Masi gave the go ahead to start the session, despite the fact that a crane was still on the track, removing a car. That's how Jules Bianchi died, you know: a crane was on the side of the track and Jules ran straight into it after losing control on the wet track. Masi's excuse was that they're "still learning," which I take to mean that one person's death is not enough of a lesson. In my book, that's not a mistake. That's wanton disregard for safety. You speak of sorting things out in real time, but Masi had no problem red flagging the session after deploying a safety car in Jeddah. What stopped him from doing it here? And that's where the criticism of Masi comes from: inconsistency.

[@milkshakemuncher]

You all understand that it was not the FIA's fault that Lewis and Max were on different tyres yeah? All teams were allowed to pit and change them, Mercedes chose not to, it turned out to be a very costly strategic error.

[@mastermao8592]

All I can say is Lewis Hamilton was incredibly gracious never been a fan of his but the character he displayed earned my respect. To be so measured and calm after being robbed blind of the title

[@mnm8818]

I'm more angry than Lewis lol

[@pierremartin9048]

Great job for the season to your team “The Race”, was part of the journey of this absolutely fantastic and fun filled for the fans year.

[@emiliosr2978]

Regarding their videos, yes they did a pretty good job, the rest isn't that great tbh

[@eddiel7635]

Na, will go down as an all time low point for F1 I’m afraid

[@PaleWhiteMale]

@@eddiel7635 no it won't. I get it it sucks if your a mercedes fan but finishing that race actually racing was best option. Would of been a huge disappointment to finish a race without actually racing.

[@mattbilello6229]

@@PaleWhiteMale Racing for one lap where the car behind had no chance over the prior 53 laps to get close and the race leader had to honestly pass four cars under race conditions losing time to that car and then only give that second car on fresh tires to ability to get right behind leader who had no opportunity to pit for tires was good for the sport - either a Max fan or you are clueless that Lewis had no chance of holding Max back unless he drives dangerously and weaves all over the track and hope that he isn’t crashed into or penalized for weaving - it was bad for F1. I’m am not a fan of either Max or Lewis - I am McLaren fan and actually root for Lando, Daniel and Carlos Sainz when McLaren isn’t vying for the win. This sport really isn’t build for racing - it’s all about qualifying - fir f sake they don’t even refuel the cars have a team of 12 people just to change tires - I mean pit stops are joke just like cars can’t even pass on track unless they dive bomb into a corner because of dirty air. I hope the new aero regs improve things because now the sport sucks and if you don’t root for RB or Mercedes then there is no reason to watch races because other teams can’t win unless those teams have mechanical failures or crashes.

[@bobbob9494]

@@mattbilello6229 Nobody denies that this was bad luck for Hamilton and there was indeed nothing Lewis could do. But this is part of the sport and things like this happened troughout the season. Also a couple of times in favour of Hamilton. Deal with it.

[@leeryan1051]

If this season has taught me anything, it's taught me that the principal/race director radio needs to eliminated from being aired and toto and Horner should never be interviewed or do a press conference for the rest of their careers.

[@m.g7408]

I think you’ve taken away the wrong lessons here bro! So you prefer the shit to just go on but no one finds out? How is transparency and accountability ever a bad thing?! If there’s a screw up that needs attention not the cover up.

[@Kevinschart]

i'm glad i was able to hear those communications. told me everything i need to know not to take this sport seriously. otherwise i would be under the assumption that everything in f1 was above board.

[@raoulh.4440]

Masi has repeatedly shown himself to be in over his head in the last two years. Regardless of who won, he needs to go.

[@VishalNehra]

No

[@tecdesigns8183]

If it had finished under the safety car can you imagine the conspiracies about latifi crashing deliberately to save Lewis's tyres?

[@thatdudecandrive4252]

I especially hate the law that says race director can do whatever they want, this is basically saying if we want to rig who wins we can like wtaf am I witnessing am I the only one who thinks this?

[@LG-dt7lg]

Merc lost on strategy. Fortune favours the bold.

[@thatdudecandrive4252]

@@LG-dt7lg no they didn’t if Lewis had boxed for softs max would’ve stayed out and masi wouldn’t of rushed safety car and max would’ve won WC still or if he did put safety car in he would’ve kept lapped drivers out and gave Lewis a mountain to drive Micheal masi the fia and the f1 brand wanted a new championship and no one can ever change my mind.

[@soldmate5539]

You are not the only one, I witness dirty sports today as well

[@thatdudecandrive4252]

@@LG-dt7lg no reply? Didn’t think so

[@LG-dt7lg]

@@thatdudecandrive4252 the hounds are barking, but the train does not stop. :)

[@acalin5]

As a former Hakkinen and present Kimi fan, I appreciate winning in fairness. I didn't like Schumi because of this. However I could easily appreciate his 2000 season (even the Spa incident) and his overall speed and consistency (the later, Hakkinen didn't have). THIS season however has some patterns: - Max most of the time can't make a clean pass on Hamilton (Imola, Spain, Monza just a few with starts that were dirty) -> this is, in our days, called "elbows out racing". In Hakkinen's era it was pure dirty racing. Hamilton is left with no choice but to race with "elbows out" approach - other ugly incidents along the season (Silverstone, Monza, Brazil) where, due to the previous point - last, but the most important, the stewards couldn't impose proper and clear rules to punish the 'elbows out', unfair racing, approach of Max All of the above results in a disgusting final 2 laps of the last race. I still can't believe what I've seen. And the stewards dismiss Mercedes protest with basically a reason that "the race director" can overule article 48.12 because the "safety car in" message :)))))) Are you kidding me? It's a, don't know how to call it, "circle" argument: - what if Sainz wanted to win the race and had fresh tires on and could pass Max and then himself take a shot at the victory? That wasn't possible, was it? Sainz was blocked by lapped cars - how could Mercedes defend their racing? If they would have pitted Ham for fresh tires, Max would have stayed out and win the race. So they understood the RULES and decided their strategy based on the predictability of the rules -> that goes out the window apparently, because the RACE DIRECTOR cand overule whatever he likes - HOW IN THE WORLD CAN YOU CALL (as a RACE DIRECTOR) "let them race", when one of them is with 40+ laps HARD old tires and the other one has 2-3 laps old SOFTS? That is not racing, that is pure, deliberate slaughtering of Hamilton. Or maybe the F1 public has become a mindless, bloodthirsty, popcorn driven public? Where as long as there is a battle, it's super cool. No matter the rules or the fairness. I hope Mercedes goes all the way and maybe someone will do justice for what just happened. And please bring back sand traps, gravel, grass, whatever. So this 'elbows out' racing can lead to visible damage for the one who is pushed out of the track. Maybe together with Kimi I will leave this sport as well. But it's difficult to explain to my son, who is passionate about racing, how in the world the guy who dominated a race, who was clearly the better in this race (and the previous) has lost the race to the 'elbows out' racer.

[@maggie7843]

Hamilton has his moments too. Ask Alex Albon, just to name one person who lost at least a podium due Hamilton ramming him off the track.

[@CVasqueezy]

Here’s a little 🧂. You seem to have more than enough though. And idk how much more “elbows out” you can get than driving completely off track to get a position back. F1 seems a little intense for you. Try karting on for size.

[@alexkerr306]

Well Said.

[@SirDuiv]

The whole season Hammilton got the Mercedes paid FIA stewards in his pocket. There were 3 or 4 races that would have ended different if it was judged fair... Max indeed was given this last race win... But not the championship. If all went fair this year, Max would have been champion a few races ago! So stop crying, accept... Like you all easily accepted the unfair decisions towards Max the whole year!!!

[@CVasqueezy]

@@SirDuiv well said.

[@babelaszombie]

I will remember GR63 qualifying on the front row at Spa, and LN4 fighting LH44 for the win, to only lose out in the dying laps due to tires. Also Seb and Fernando back on the podium. And Carlos Sainz ending higher than Charles at the end of the season. What a year for F1.

[@christopherrc1881]

LoL lost due to tyres?! Therefore a fair ending to the championship?! It must be nice to stick your head in the sand

[@Jakaj99]

I will remember, that Lewis is hypocritical clown that is slower in faster car. And Toto Wolff screaming 'miiikeey'

[@nothanks4425]

↑ ↑ ↑ I'll remember a flood of toxic fans frantically trying to dump on whoever disagrees with whatever their drivers have done, and ridiculous stewarding decisions dousing the flames. I'll remember the best F1 season to watch, but the worst F1 season for the integrity of the sport.

[@chrisnuno3457]

@@Jakaj99 Michael!! Lmao!! 🤣🤣🤣

[@fmg182]

ah yes.. the GR63 who could have won 1st or 2nd place easily, in a car in which his seat fitting was not appropiate, nor was his practice with it (remember the steering wheel, or him asking if it had DAS?). That car, is a champion. The driver Sir Ham, not so much. Dude was always aggresive, then complains about aggresive defense driving.

[@shanemouton7606]

i will remember the 2021 season as one through which Hamilton and Verstappen both shone like the bright stars that they are with both having crossed a line a number of times. With this said, we have to look at the entire season, not just this one single decision. The decisions in past races, with incidents between both drivers, have largely if not always played into the hands of Mercedes and Hamilton with massive points associated with these decisions like the 26 points vs Max's 0 points in Silverstone where one rival took the other out for racing position, was penalized by ten seconds and still won in the end. This paved the way for the rest of these moves setting the stage that if you take a chance you will get penalized (lets say 10 seconds or so) but your rival would be out, hence being a benefit to the one taking the chances... With this said, finally a decision went Redbull's way with some master class tactics for the new tires and a exhilarating final lap show down, on track, as you said, just the way we all wanted it! Its all said and done, Mercedes clinch the constructors and some glory where Redbull get the drivers championship and some glory also. Lets hope that the changes dont split the field up too much or level pegging al of them to the point this saga is never ended... It has been great to watch and an exceptional season by all!

[@MylesHSG]

Both pit stops by Max were no brainers, not really a masterclass of tactics. He only lost 12 seconds under the VSC stop and it was a free put stop under the SC.

[@darrenjackson813]

1st off, the move in Silverstone.. The tone was set way before and even previous season. Look at France, very similar move from Max and Lewis backed out. It was a Max move on Max, and unlike other drivers he doesn't back out and that's why the crash happened (although Lewis was at fault) If it was Max on the inside most others would of backed out. 2nd, not really a masterclass. What's RB got to lose by pitting? They didn't have the pace to catch Lewis so the obvious thing was for them to pit. They pit and the safety car stays out, they stay 2nd, or the safety car comes in and they can race it out for 1st. Unfourtunatly for Lewis, if he goes in, Max stays out and takes track position and if the restart process is followed to the letter then he's given position to Max. It's been a great championship, we've had plenty of incidents, crashes, tyre failures etc.. Both drivers deserve to be champion. How ever it's a shame it's essentially been decided this way. At end of the day Masi, for the first in his career has decided to restart a SC car this way (you even need to look at Eiffel GP 2020 and his comments there) We wanted it settled on track, but by not following a regulation that Masi always has, and has often quoted, it's essentially handing the victory to one driver.

[@radioflyer985]

@@MylesHSG Exactly! Especially the last one. Red Bull had nothing to lose at that point, whereas Mercedes had everything to lose if they brought Hamilton in, relinquishing the lead and potentially handing Max the championship with the race ending under safety car conditions. That scenario is worse than how it actually played out.

[@MylesHSG]

@@radioflyer985 the only risk Max had with that stop was getting behind back markers, but Masi sorted that out for him.

[@daudasankoh2230]

There was no way that the race was gone ended behind safety car. Cause both teams agreed for the race to finished on track. So Merc should have pit.

[@acenda-r2d2]

What an utter disgrace the FIA was in this race and for most of the season with their unpredictable rulings.

[@Sjiznit]

This race they got it right 👍

[@ousmanbojang4511]

@@Sjiznit if you think that's right then f1 is not for you

[@kobemaui9983]

@@ousmanbojang4511 But let me guess passing off the track and gaining a massive advantage is ok? Not very F1

[@ousmanbojang4511]

@@kobemaui9983 max run him off the road completely and barely made the corner himself

[@salehnaser7245]

Thank you for what you have done all season. The first thing to know is that the stewards are part of the game as it happens in football. Imagine if Mercedes entered the pit lane and changed the tyres. Will their reaction be as we saw? I see the problem is only when the race director hesitates to put the cars back behind the max. And the other thing is that they should not show those conversations that happened on TV. Finally, Max was not lucky in several races, but luck was with him in the last moments. I agree with many of the comments. Formula One should be for racing only, not just a show on TV. Thanks

[@jonathanwalters8900]

of course they wouldn’t pit… they expected lewis to still have the lead, not have the FIA have those specific cars unlap themselves

[@salehnaser7245]

@@jonathanwalters8900 In fact, both deserve to win the title. But in the end, one of them has to win, and that's what happened. Greetings to you

[@jajaja9661]

No. F1 is a show. Without the show, the racing is not happening. Where would the money come from?

[@stynnerk1112]

​@@jonathanwalters8900 They should have done a pit stop. Lwis would be still in front and the last lap battle would have been more hard. Lwis would have won. It's not the FIA's decision that cost the race. It was mercedes strategy. That's what they don't want to accept. As a fan I always want to see racing battle not the SC finishing the race.

[@valentindogbo9293]

@@stynnerk1112 Had the rule been followed as it is written, the race would have ended behind the safety car. Team Mercedes playing by the written rules and expecting the written rules to be adhered to rightfully so elected not to pit calculating that with the remaining laps, the race would end behind the safety car. what happened is akin to NFL official handing an extra timeout to a team out of timeout to stop the clock running its course at the end of a Super Bowl game so that team can run a last play with freshly substituted players. What a disgrace FIA. As fan, you should value the rules of the game.

[@Empristis47]

Rules aside, Max got lucky, without the SC he would probably have caught up to Hamilton in the last 1-2 laps if at all. Mercedes made strategy mistakes, Hamilton kept telling them the tires wouldnt last all the way, but he did his best to keep the gap as big as possible and preserve the tires. In my opinion Both drivers deserved the title. Those saying Max deserved it is because they just don't like hamilton. It's okay to support a different driver, but give respect where is due.

[@daviddredge1178]

Tyres were not the issue. The gap was not closing fast enough for verstappen to catch Hamilton.

[@johnnyboy7538]

i don't know what race u watched, Max was not going to catch Lewis sorry, 5 laps to go 11 secs gap and Lewis had good grip on his tyres.

[@chippiethegreat681]

Baku, Silverstone, Hungary - All three races where Verstappen lost a tonne of points to Hamilton through no fault of his own. Verstappen deserved this championship and it should have been settled by Saudi Arabia.

[@Empristis47]

@@johnnyboy7538you missed the point. Most probably he wouldn't catch him I agree

[@johnnyboy7538]

@@chippiethegreat681 🤣🤣🤣oh my goodness, Hungary too. the level of delusion with you people is astronomical.

[@KushGangarD]

Why not get the lapped cars between Verstappen and Sainz out of the way? Max didn’t have to worry about the car behind him. He didn’t have to think that another Ocon situation would happen. In my opinion, Masi and the FIA have blown it big time.

[@Manderson0228]

our tears don't matter and they won't be remembered, just be happy we got to see a good race Darth.