F1 Stars On Abu Dhabi 2021 Controversy
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The 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was one of the most controversial moments in Formula 1 history, and in this video, we dive into the perspectives of two F1 titans: Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff and Red Bull’s legendary designer Adrian Newey. From the dramatic final laps to the intense debate surrounding the FIA’s decisions, Wolff and Newey weigh in on how the events unfolded and the lasting impact on Formula 1.
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#HighPerformance #TotoWolff #Mercedes #Formula1 #AdrianNewey #RedBull #AstonMartin #LewisHamilton #MaxVerstappen
41 Comments
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Look, LH left a bus wide gap at T5. Had he not done that, everybody's happy. Who's to blame really?
I'm so glad lewis didnt win ad21 😀
Lots of Hamilton fans in the comments. I dont even understand what they think was done wrong.
Its easy to say accept it and move on when the rule change doesnt affect you
Non concordo assolutamente con Wolff anche perche' di episodi controversi ve ne sono stati anche altri di quel super mondiale(tra i piu' belli di sempre se non la piu',con il finale piu' bello,rocambolesco ed in parte controverso che si ricordi),prima e non nel ultimo gp,dove la Red bull fu piu' brava a rischiare e non essere conservativa piu' di tanto come poi ha fatto durante la SC che ci fu per l'incidente di Latifi e fossi Wolff ecco dove farei un mea culpa insomma.Detto questo riguardo a quel episodio facendo fede anche al rapporto FIA su quella situazione createsi,si puo' dire che non tutto sia filato liscio(come il non far sdoppiare tutte le vetture poiche' non tutte potevano farlo da sole e non per chiara responsabilita' del race director),ma no che quel giro racing non si poteva dare visto íl regolamento in essere sul uso della SC in quel momento(poi cambiato onde evitare altre interpretazioni in futuro nei vari gp),come l'art.48.13 quale affermava che la SC rientrava appena esposto il messaggio "SC in this lap" e non il giro successivo a tutte le vetture sdoppiate art.48.12 visto la non totale applicazione fatta per le ragioni dette poc'anzi,considerando poi l'art.15.3 quale da potere decisionale preponderante sul uso della SC e non al race director.
The biggest "issue," if you want to call it that, is that motorsport, as much as I'd love it to be just that, is ultimately an entertainment product. And if it's not entertaining, then things need to change. Mercedes and Lewis created the most dominant era in F1, which led to deeper and deeper frustration within the community. In the final minutes of the final race in 2021, Masi decided to bend the rules for the sake of entertainment. My research concluded that he didn't break the rules, but he bent them so much that harsh criticism is totally expected and fair. Regardless, as a Max fan, I was so happy for him, but I still felt gutted for Lewis and for the historical moment he had right at his fingertips. But again, from an entertainment perspective, we got a finale we'll never forget. And a Lewis who might still be hungry for an 8th world title, driving in a Ferrari…
if hamilton just got the same treatment as max.
hamilton should have gotten a 10 second drive through penalty from cutting corner 6.
plus hamilton should have also gotten a penalty for the ramming at silverstone and a few other races.
I think it’s important to note that everyone likes to focus on one point of contention in the “normal procedures”. it’s worth remembering that, ironically, if Michael Masi had followed all the normal procedures and asked all the lapped cars to go past before the end of lap 56, Max would have passed Lewis on the last lap anyway.” This is what everyone forgets, or ignores.
I realise this is starting old debates but everybpdy else seems to be chiming in so why not
People are missing some of the very relevant context.
1. Team agreed in the drivers breifing that there would not be a red flag for a crash at the corner latifi binned it at, unless there was wall damage.
2. Teams had agreed prior to the race on sunday they did not want the world championship to be settled under the safety car.
Both of these were agreed at the drivers and teams breifing on the thursday.
Not to mention the additional context that Hamilton cut the course and gained a distinct and clear and lasting advantage. He should have recieved a 10 second time penalty for that, Based on the stewarding of the season.
The people saying it was manipulated and or rigged, are missing the fact that just becuase it was the first year the the conversations with race control were broadcast, does not mean those conversation weren't and aren't happening every single race. The fact we heard them for the first time made people think there was manipulation.
I don't think what masi did was correct, there is a case it could be interpreted that way to allow the cars to get out of the way for safety purposes (as they would have been immediately blue flagged on a restart.
I think Masi was in the middle of a perfect storm, and ultimate chose the decision that resulted in the one lap shoot out. I don't think it was right, but I think it was legal, and I don't believe he acted maliciously.
Merc agreed and then were in a position to lose, so immediately backtracked.
I do think across that season max should have been the champion, and was the better driver that year. Hamilton doesnt take max out at silverstone, or monza – or gets the correct time penalty it would have ensured it
I should stress I am neither a max nor lewis fan, I just see it as it was
With no offense, what happened is already in the past. But should Hamilton deserve to be considered better than the M. Schumacher? If we leave everything aside, and compare their performance, we can see quite clearly that in Hamilton's case the Mercedes car which dominated the turbo-hybrid era, actually won him most of the championships. Once he didn't had the best car, Russel was faster, and now Leclerc is further proving the same. Until now the one and only all time great is M. Schumacher which has won even when he didn't had the best car. And currently Max Verstapen is showing us what raw talent and skill is all about, still having remarkable achievements with the Redbull car, which is realistically only 4th fastest on the grid.
Lewis was dominating the race. He would have clearly won the race. A simple decision by the FIA put him at such a disadvantage that he ultimately had no chance. So what are we talking about here?
Red Bull would have gone nuclear of the shoe had been on the other foot 😂
Masi and Wheatley best buddies…
Apart from the fact that it was, of course, a morally difficult decision. Masi actually only made two small mistakes. 1. He did not allow the cars to be lapped earlier, even though the crashed car was already gone. There would have been enough time. This leads to the second mistake. As everyone knows, he then only allowed the cars between Max and Lewis to be lapped. As I said, it is morally difficult, but it was in the regulations.
In my opinion, Masi's subsequent dismissal was a brutally exaggerated misjudgement. He did not make any serious mistakes and acted in the spirit of the sport. This dismissal shows the influence of teams on the FIA, especially Mercedes and Toto. Masi should never have been fired. And Toto here, playing the hurt and devastated person, shows me I am right. Up until today, he needs to justify their lobbying to cut off Masi
I have no dog in the fight I don’t like either team but to act like Mercedes weren’t justified in their feelings insane.
Ask Massa how's he coping… Nothing in life is guaranteed nor is anything owed to Lewis.
you are the killer of SENNA?and you talk? get lost
Face it, this Will be trauma for life for the Brits..
Either way masi was damed if he did damed if he didnt whatever decision he made their was goikg to be be a a team and a fan base that wouldnt agree. Unfortunately hindsight is 20/20 but youve got 2-3-4-5 team bosses in your ear (only 2 would have been broadcast) trying to get there point across and half a lap to make a decision he was never going to win. He also Unfortunately had nobody along side him to say 'no dont do that, do this'
Mercedes had the option to apeal the decision and ultimately decided not to, weather they believed that the FIA would step in and say no that was a mistake or not we will never know. The option was there they never took it.
Ghost writer! I've been telling everyone Adrian can really write a book!! Andrew who?
Am I the only F1 fan that is so fed up with this argument? And the thing no one talks about is why didn't Merc pit Hamilton for tyres? Hamilton said it himself during the race and the engineer said "track position". It's not the hungaroring mate! It's two straights over a kilometre long with drs. It never seems to be mentioned…
Besides the RedBull Team & RB Supporter i never heared anyone say the win was O.K. Even if drivers ask they make the impression that Lewis should be the winner.
It is obviously corrupt when the world still talking about it after almost 5 years. This might be the biggest robbery in sports history, nothing comes in mind that is anywhere close to this.
It was interesting to see just how much of an advantage Mercedes still had with their locked in engine advantage when they decided to run their engines at full power that year. That whole regulation set was a total farce.
Good thing they penalized Lewis in Portugal for track limits, on Silverstone for taking out Max. All races and rules were applied during the whole year by the book. Oh wait…
Don’t you DARE try to absolve Red Bull of the machinations during those final laps at Abu Dhabi. Y’all with your revisionist history. They cheated. Massi cheated for Red Bull—plain and simple. And if the rules don’t mean anything and you can just throw them out at your leisure, well, it’s all bullshit then. Such a crappy softball question to Newey. What a freakin punk question.
It didn’t “get to you” because y’all benefitted from cheating.
NOT CONTROVERSIAL, CORRUPT. Get it right.
They should have let every lapped car unlap themselves. That's the rules. it was made ridiculous by the decision to only allow the cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to unlap themselves.
god sun glasses pure scooters McLaren ones loans too
5:53 – I'm buying exactly 0% of that comment about Max.
People blame Red Bull for that decision because Horner basically badgered Masi into it, we all saw it. The decision was plain wrong based on the regulations. All the other teams thought so too and it's the reason Masi got fired, but that was not enough, Hamilton's win should have been reinstated. This was one of the lowest and most shameful episodes in F1 history.
There is a difference from a bad race and a robbery 😆
cant believe people are still crying over this 😂😂
Wow, i never listen to podcasts, but this is quite good
Load off bullshit,and LH and Mercedes knew MV would be right behind them,they talked about it on the boardradio. LH: Will he behind me?". Team: He will as soon as the backmarkers have past. All talk about this isue further on is lies
Regardless of who you support, that last minute decision to change the rules of F1 were absolutely inexcusable.
To change the rules of a sport "just because" should never be allowed.
Why Mercedes never took the FIA to court is beyond me.
Not only did Michael Masi decision ruin the championship for Hamilton, but he also the wrecked the creditability of Redbull & Verstappen.
Shame on F1 and shame on the FIA.
so nothing really said then !
The incident changed the F1s principle that i loved.
haha lewis was so not fine after abu dabi. he might done a little surfing , he might done a little crying also
So many LH Crybabies in the comments 😂. Suck it up