Max Verstappen secured his maiden World Championship with victory in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton finishing second as the race ended in a nail-biting one-lap sprint after a late Safety Car. The result, which saw Valtteri Bottas finish sixth and Sergio Perez retire, means Mercedes have clinched a record eighth consecutive constructors’ championship.

Medium-tyred Hamilton jumped soft-shod Verstappen at the start, while the Dutchman came back in Turn 6, nudging him wide and over the run-off, but the Mercedes driver continued in the lead. Stewards decided not to investigate. The pit window opened when Verstappen came in on Lap 13, Hamilton a lap later, leaving Sergio Perez in the lead with the mission to hold off Hamilton.

Perez did exactly that, on Laps 20 to 21 – being dubbed a “legend” by his team mate as he let him past to continue the chase, before pitting on Lap 22. The podium looked certain until he retired on Lap 56 under a Safety Car, which was brought out for a Nicholas Latifi crash.

That Safety Car, during which Verstappen pitted for soft tyres, left the race with just one lap of green flag racing remaining, producing another memorable moment in this epic season. Verstappen did make the pass on Hamilton into Lap 5, the decisive move, and while Hamilton attempted to come back towards Turn 9, there was nothing doing. History was made, as it was always going to be, and the trophy went to the Dutchman for the first time.

That was a pretty exciting end to a crazy season that will likely lead to sporting regulation changes. In a way I think Lewis was cheated of the win but I also think back to Silverstone and how unbalanced that decision was and how it fueled the whole battle. I doubt the FIA wil reverse any decisions but I'm curious about the fallout.

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:spammm:

Max! Well done to him and Red Bull. Congrats to Merc for their title and to Ferrari for turning around their terrible season last year to be best of the rest.

Congrats to Hamilton too for an epic fight to the final lap. I want to make a villain out of him, but it's hard to do when he conducts himself with such class, grace and professionalism. He would have been a worthy champion this year.

Best F1 season I've ever witnessed and I've been doing this a long time. More of this please.

Formula 1 could have a new race director in 2022 following the controversial Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the FIA's head of single-seater says.

The sport's governing body is conducting a review into 2021's final race, when the safety car rules were not followed correctly by race director Michael Masi.

Peter Bayer, newly appointed as the FIA's head of F1, said: "Michael did a super job in many ways. We told him that.

"But also that there is a possibility there could be a new race director."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/60170232

Fine with me. He's simply too meek for me. I want a director with more of a commanding presence. I also think that F1 should consider splitting duties, and having a safety director to lessen the demands on the race director.


Car reveals in two weeks. The season starts in March!

Lewis Hamilton has declared he is "back" in his first social media post since Formula 1's controversial Abu Dhabi GP title decider.

I would have been disappointed if he retired. It would have seemed like a childish tantrum even if justified and not in line with his current social status.

Agreed :yep:

I'm now awaiting the decision regarding Mr Masi. Hamilton may well have been given a clue as to what if anything is going to transpire from all of this.

Michael Masi set to lose FIA job as Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes to get their wish granted.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/moto...out&li=AAnZ9Ug

Michael Masi has been removed as F1 race director as part of a restructure at governing body the FIA in the wake of last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem announced a series of changes as a result of the inquiry into the controversial end to last year's World Championship.

Masi failed to correctly apply the rules in a late safety car period and had a direct impact on the outcome of the title race.

Two men will now alternate in the role, while extra help will be provided to officials.

The new race directors will be Eduardo Freitas, who formerly performed the role in the World Endurance Championship, and Niels Wittich, who did so in the DTM German Touring Car Championship.

Masi will be "offered a new position within the FIA", Ben Sulayem said.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/60418716

"This year is our year!" the Ferrari fans exclaimed while crawling out of their hibernation where they have been on a steady drip of Copium.



Super happy for Max and what a season finale that was but I'm excited to see where this new car takes us in 2022! God willing I will be able to go attend the US Grand Prix again in Austin.

All the teams are in full optimism mode hoping the rules changes even the odds. It's fun to see the cars actually don't look all the same and I can't wait for testing this week to see what actually rolls down the track.

Formula 1 has terminated its contract with the Russian Grand Prix.

The sport's commercial arm, which controls the calendar, has decided racing in the country is impossible following the invasion of Ukraine.

The race in Sochi scheduled for September this year has already been cancelled. There will now no longer be a race in St Petersburg, where it was due to move in 2023.

Everything is being banned even the The Fédération Internationale Féline is feline the pressure
Russia’s Cats Are Now Banned From International Competition and they can't drive or hold an AK

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture...ition-1315925/

I doubt Vladolf Putrid will either know or care.

The Danish F1 driver Kevin Magnussen has return to HAAS

https://www.haasf1team.com/news/kevi...s-haas-f1-team

Markus

Testing is over, and now it kicks off for real.

My analysis of every team at this stage, in order based on where I think they are at the moment

1. Red Bull. Probably a toss-up with Ferrari, but take top spot because they turned the fastest lap, which is the point right? They ran a lot of laps and turned the fastest time, while having few reliability issues. They progressed through their programmes like clockwork, and both drivers impressed. It could hardly have gone better. Red Bull were the most deceptive team in the run-up to the season, essentially hiding everything until the last moment. They sort of did the same by making big design changes overnight Friday. But what they did worked, and the RB18 looks like it has a title challenge in it. Red Bull look relaxed and confident.

2. Ferrari. I'd really put them at 1a, their pre-season has been that good. Even though Red Bull pipped them at the line for fastest lap, there no way to know if any team was running at maximum pace. And like Red Bull, Ferrari had a great testing phase, looking composed and quick. Like every team they suffered from the porpoising, maybe more than most, but seem to have gotten it under control. The F1-75 (75th anniversary) looks great, is quick and seems robust based on the pre-season. Both drivers seem quietly confident, while downplaying any hype. Like Red Bull, their programme could hardly have gone better once the hopping was solved. Ferrari look like genuine title contenders heading in to the first race at Sakhir.

3. Alpha Tauri. The top two spots seemed clear based on results so far. The rest is more muddled. But of those teams, Alpha Tauri seemed to have the best package in terms of pace, reliability and having everything go to plan. My gut tells me they won't be third at the end of the season, but they head in to the first race in good shape. in some ways as Ferrari goes, so goes AT. And those signs are bright. I think Gasly is underrated and set to turn some heads. That is counterbalanced by Tsunoda being the other driver. But all signs are that he is more focused and well aware of what he needs to improve to be a top driver. I wasn't impressed with his driving last year, he struggled to score most of the season. And he is a bit of a hot head. But he's the most refreshing interview in the paddock, and I expect a sharp improvement from him. So everything looks in place for the AT-03 to get a hot start. But can they maintain that as other teams get their acts together?

4. Alpine. Few are talking about Alpine, but they put both cars in the top six on the time sheets on the final day of testing. Both drivers seem optimistic. The A522 sounds great, is obviously quick and was sporting Racing Point's 2020 livery. What can go wrong? Alonso made me eat my words last year, and seems even more confident now. It wouldn't surprise me to see this team as 'best of the rest' come the end of the year. They will be happy about how things have gone so far.

5. Mercedes. They only sit fifth because of all the teams, none seem more off-balance than Merc. There's obviously pace in the W13, but surprisingly, Mercedes have been unable to unlock it. They ended testing with as many questions as answers, and are still suffering from porpoising with testing now over. Both drivers sound concerned, and Merc will start the season on the back foot to a degree. But this is Mercedes, and you don't win eight titles on the bounce unless you can engineer the sh!t out of it. And they looked out of sorts after testing last year too, and went on to win the first race. But because everyone has gotten a do-over, and it looks like the field is compressed as a result, a slow start for Merc would be more difficult to overcome.

6. Haas. Seriously. Haas basically mailed it in last year, declining to upgrade their car and spending all of their resources developing this year's VF-22. It looks to have paid off. The car looks to have genuine pace, and the team will be thrilled at their prospects of fighting for points this year, having finished last at every race last year. At a glance, the disastrous off-track events could seem dibilitating, but I think are a blessing in disguise. If Haas can sort their funding, then replacing Mazepin with Magnussen is a big upgrade. Schumi Jr will look to improve and I think we will be seeing Haas scoring on a regular basis this year.

7. Alfa Romeo. Heading in to Sakhir last year I was saying AR were the grid's most-improved team. That faded quickly and they ran the entire season just out of the points. This season they look better, the C42 has genuine pace based on testing times, although they suffered quite a bit from niggling reliability issues. Bottas shrugged it all off and will be looking to storm out of the gate. Zhou is an unknown, but didn't look out of place or awed by his new situation like Tsunoda and Mazepin did a year ago. If AR can get control over their mechanical reliability I think they will make some noise this year.

8. McLaren. The most disappointing team for me after testing. Little went right. Like other teams McLaren suffered from reliability issues, but theirs were not so niggling. Front axle and brake issues are more fundamental than leaks and that sort of thing. I think the MCL36 is probably quick, but they didn't really get a chance to show it. With Ricciardo missing Bahrain with Covid, McLaren will be hoping things improve in a hurry. I don't expect them to finish this far down, but they don't kick it off from a position of strength.

9. Aston Martin. Again, this is all sort of muddled, and AM could be third, or eighth, or anywhere. They quietly went about their business, but I don't think AMR22 has title pace in it at the moment. But it looks great, and Aston Martin have reason for optimism. Vettel was a better driver last year, but I'm not sold on him and Stroll making much noise this year. We will see.

10. Williams. When they revealed the FW22 it felt like maybe Williams was back. But the car doesn't look all that quick at this stage, and they had trouble with reliability. The pairing of Albon and Latifi doesn't inspire me and right now it just feels like WIlliams are the back markers. But these things can change quickly.

I think this season we will see every team scoring points, and maybe a six or seven car midfield, if you know what I mean. So much is still unknown, and Bahrain will show us more clearly where things stand. But right now, I'd predict a Red Bull and Ferrari battle for the title, especially if Merc don't get a handle on things straight away.

Bring it on!

I really don't know what to think mainly because I don't have any takeaway over how the new aero will change overtaking, plus the power units being frozen.