FIA STEWARD: 'RACE DIRECTOR MASI GIFTED VERSTAPPEN THE 2021 TITLE'

Danny Sullivan, twice a Driver Steward during a Grand Prix in the 2021 season, believes that then-race director Michael Masi ‘in effect gifted’ the world title that year to Max Verstappen with his decision in the closing stages of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“But for me, it wasn’t a good decision. That’s my opinion, and everyone is free to debate it—and we’ll keep doing that until we all stop.”

- DANNY SULLIVAN

To this day, there is debate about the events in the final phase of the last Grand Prix of that historic season. Lewis Hamilton seemed on course to win the race—and with it his eighth title—until a crash by Latifi changed everything.

Once the debris from the Williams had been cleared, Masi decided to let only five cars unlap themselves past the race leader, which put Max Verstappen, on fresher tyres, directly behind Hamilton. In the final lap of the Grand Prix, it was easy for the Dutchman to pass Hamilton.

'A mistake by the race director'

Looking back on that day, Sullivan (75), also a former Formula 1 driver, told Epartrade: "The stewards never had to make a decision about those things. People were yelling at him that they didn’t want to finish under a yellow flag because it didn’t look good.”

"That’s why he let five cars through, which basically gave Max a chance. Well, according to the rules he should have let all the lapped cars through. But if they had done that, they wouldn’t have been able to finish the race. They would have had to finish under a yellow flag because the other lapped cars were further back in the field.”

Michael Masi - Photo: RacePictures

"So he let those five by and put Max right behind Lewis. Max had pitted for fresh tires—Lewis hadn’t—he was on qualifying tires, on the red compound. Lewis’ tires had done 44 laps. There was nothing else that could happen except that he would pass him at that point. With that decision, he [Masi] basically gifted him the world championship."

Sullivan says he is a Verstappen fan

Sullivan disagrees with Masi’s decision, but also defends the Australian. “These guys travel nonstop, they’re constantly under pressure from teams, from everyone. There’s all sorts of stuff going on. A lot of pressure, it’s the last five minutes of the season.”

The American also says: “If you’re a Max fan—and I am a Max fan, don’t get me wrong—but if I’m Dutch and lean more toward Max, I would say: ‘but that was the decision.’ And it was, Max did nothing wrong.”

“But for me it wasn’t a good decision. That’s my opinion, and everyone is free to debate it—and we’ll keep doing that until we all stop.”

- byLudo van Denderen

TED KRAVITS ON MAX VERSTAPPEN'S WDC TRACK RECORD

 

HAMILTON 'AT PEACE' WITH CONTROVERSIAL 2021 ABU DHABI GP

Michael Masi (pictured right) has come under further scrutiny after a call he made during the 2020 Eifel GP (pictured left), which involved a safety car. (Images: Fox Sports/Getty Images)

 

 Lewis Hamilton has said he is "at peace" with the controversial outcome of his 2021 championship fight with Max Verstappen even though he felt "robbed" of a record eighth F1 title.

At that year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, FIA race director Michael Masi incorrectly applied F1's rulebook to force a restart on the final lap.

Verstappen dramatically passed Hamilton on that lap to win the race and his first championship.

Hamilton, who has rarely spoken candid about that race, has opened up about it in an interview with GQ Magazine.

"Was I robbed? Obviously," Hamilton said. "I mean, you know the story."

An enduring image of the event was the moment Hamilton shook hands with Verstappen after the race, despite his feelings on how it had ended -- in the heat of the moment the Brit famously told Mercedes over the radio the outcome had been "manipulated."

The broadcast also showed him in a long embrace with his father, Anthony.

Hamilton said he is proud of how he dealt with the result.

"But I think what was really beautiful in that moment, which I take away from it, was my dad was with me. And we'd gone through this huge roller coaster of life together, ups and downs.

"And the day that it hurt the most, he was there, and the way he raised me was to always stand up, keep your head high. And I obviously went to congratulate Max, and not realising the impact that that would have, but also I was really conscious of, like, there's a mini-me watching.

"This is the defining moment of my life. And I think it really was. I felt it. I didn't know how it was going to be perceived.

"I hadn't, like, visualised it. But I was definitely conscious of: these next 50 metres that I walk is where I fall to the ground and die -- or I rise up."

Asked if he still thinks about the race, he added: "If I see a clip of it, I still feel it, but I'm at peace with it."

Had the outcome been different, Hamilton would have moved clear of the record of seven world championships he shares with Michael Schumacher.

Hamilton has not won an F1 race since the event before that Abu Dhabi finale, the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

- Nate Saunders, General Editor, F1

TOTO WOLFF ON THE DISGRACED MICHAEL MASI

 

FORMULA ONE MEME | SIMON DAU

 

SAMUEL L. JACKSON ON HOW SIR LEWIS HAMILTON GOT “ROBBED” BY MICHAEL MASI’S CONTROVERSIAL DECISION