F1 2021: Max Verstappen claims title in dramatic final Car News

Max Verstappen won the Formula 1 World Championship with a dramatic and controversial victory in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Red Bull-Honda rider and rival Lewis Hamilton entered the race tied on points. Verstappen qualified from pole position, but was beaten in the first round by title rival Lewis Hamilton.

Verstappen tried to regain the lead with a forceful movement in the first lap, but Hamilton left the circuit and held his position. Red Bull complained that Hamilton had gained an advantage, but the commissioners determined that no action was necessary.

Hamilton then led much of the race and apparently had a pace advantage. But the race changed when Nicolas Latifi crashed his Williams five laps from the finish, sending the safety car out.

With Verstappen just 12 seconds behind, Mercedes-AMG left Hamilton on the track with his worn tires, while the Dutchman stopped for another set. It looked like the race could end cautiously, but Fia Race Director Michael Masi then asked the four overtaken cars between the two rivals to Dunlap themselves, before instantly restarting the race with a lap. to do.

This set up a one-lap shootout, with Hamilton unable to withstand Verstapen’s charge due to his worn tires.

Verstapen, who won 10 races this year, called the result “incredible”. He added: “The whole race. I kept fighting. And then of course, that opportunity on the last lap. It’s amazing.

“It’s crazy. I mean, I don’t know what to say, these guys on my team, and of course Honda deserves it too.”

The Dutchman’s debut championship rejected Hamilton’s attempt to win a record-breaking eighth crown and ended Mercedes-AMG’s streak of eight consecutive titles – despite the team winning the constructors’ title. The event was also the last race for Red Bull’s engine supplier Honda.

However, Mercedes-AMG protested against the outcome of the race.