Lewis Hamilton reflects on the title that was “stolen” from him in 2021
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion has reflected on the title he lost in 2021 to Max Verstappen during the race in Abu Dhabi. In an interview with GQ magazine, he asserts that he still thinks about this event that has marked his career.
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix remains firmly implanted in Lewis Hamilton’s mind, as he hasn’t digested it. More than two years ago, the Briton was on the verge of winning an eighth world title, engaging in a fierce battle with Dutchman Max Verstappen in every race. Battles that could have turned into a drama as at Silverstone.
It took a track exit from Nicholas Latifi (Williams) to trigger a safety car intervention. Verstappen, then second, rushed to the pits to put on new soft tires, while Hamilton stayed out with worn hard tires. We were approaching the end of the race. The drivers were under safety car conditions but the FIA wanted to restart the race. Michael Masi, former race director, allowed the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to un-lap themselves to intensify the duel between the two men. Nothing went as planned as the lapped cars remained in the same position, but Masi decided to restart the race at the end of the same lap to allow the showdown in the final lap, contrary to the usual procedure.
The end of the story is known. With his new tires, the Dutch driver was easily able to overtake the Mercedes driver. The factions have not stopped debating this. The FIA has launched an investigation and confirmed errors in the procedure applied at the end of the race. The damage is done as Max Verstappen wins his first world championship title and Lewis Hamilton misses the opportunity to mark the history of this sport once and for all.
This is the decisive moment of my life
After this event, Hamilton wanted to take a step back, but he recognizes that it’s a heartbreaking, devastating moment. He still believes he experienced an injustice, even though he is proud of how he handled it, notably by congratulating Verstappen after the finish.
« Have I been robbed? Obviously. I mean, you know the story. But I think what was really beautiful at that time, and what I remember from it, is that my father was with me. And we went through these enormous roller coasters of life together », he told GQ magazine.
« The day it hurt me the most, he was there, and the way he raised me was to always get back up, to keep my head held high. And I obviously went to congratulate Max, without realizing the impact it would have. But I was also very aware that there was a mini-me watching. It’s the defining moment of my life.
Time passes but the wound, it, remains: « A fixation on that race? If I see a clip from it, I still feel it. But I’m at peace with that », he confesses in his interview.
But he surely hadn’t predicted that since that night on the Yas Marina circuit, he would live through two difficult seasons, without a victory, at the wheel of the Mercedes which he will leave at the end of the season.
