Toto Wolff recounts Mercedes’ heartbreak in Abu Dhabi 2021, criticizing decisions that disregarded F1 regulations and altered the championship outcome.
When reflecting on Lewis Hamilton’s time at Mercedes F1, the infamous 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix inevitably comes to mind.
Toto Wolff explained why Mercedes F1 believed they had done the hard part when the race was neutralized in Abu Dhabi following Nicholas Latifi’s crash six laps from the end. The Brackley team principal revisits the scenarios considered and explains why the title seemed secure.
“The strict interpretation of the rules is that you must let the cars pass and rejoin at the back,” Wolff stated. “So, we tick the first box, we win the championship, it’s clear, because there aren’t enough laps left, and the race ends under the Safety Car.”
“The second version is as follows: once the cars have been released, an additional lap is required before the green flag. We win the championship. The third was more of an aberration relative to the rules, but we might have understood it.”
“This would have been to restart directly for the final lap so that you have one lap under the green flag instead of behind the Safety Car. In that case, Lewis would have won because there were a few cars between them. But that wasn’t part of the regulations.”
“We couldn’t have switched to fresh tires because we were in the lead; we would have lost our position, and the race would have ended under a yellow flag or the Safety Car, meaning we would have lost the race.”
“So, with five laps to go, we are world champions. There’s no alternate scenario… and then someone decides the World Championship should end with one lap, and unlocking those cars in the middle is unheard of.”
Indeed, Michael Masi, the race director at the time, decided to allow the lapped cars between the two leaders to unlap themselves before restarting the race, which was not in the regulations. By leaving Hamilton vulnerable to Verstappen while bypassing the rules, the Australian altered the course of an exceptional season.
Wolff does not see Abu Dhabi 2021 as merely one of F1’s greatest fiascos but as one of the most controversial moments in sports overall: “Probably in most sports. Because it was clear that the referee decided to do something that wasn’t in the regulations—not even a judgment call, but simply outside the rules.”
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Wolff: Hamilton Lost 2021 Title to ‘Unregulated’ Call Wolff: Hamilton Lost 2021 Title to ‘Unregulated’ Call
