The 2021 Formula One season was exciting, but it concluded in controversy, with Verstappen edging out Hamilton in a dramatic final lap fight.
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Toto Wolff has stated that he hopes to work with the FIA in the future to learn from the events in Abu Dhabi, and that he hopes that actions can be taken rather than just words. The 2021 Formula One season was exciting, but it concluded in controversy, with Max Verstappen edging out Lewis Hamilton in a dramatic final lap fight sparked by Race Director Michael Masi’s decision to bring in the Safety Car and only allow specific cars through to unlap themselves.
Indeed, that has caused heated debate in the weeks afterwards, with the FIA confirming that they will conduct a comprehensive investigation into those last laps, with the full conclusions expected to be released just before the Bahrain Grand Prix in March.
“It is very deep. Lewis, I and the whole team are disillusioned. We love this sport because it is honest,” he said to Auto Motor und Sport. “The stopwatch never lies, but when we break the fundamental principle of fairness and the stopwatch is no longer relevant, then you doubt this sport. That all the work, blood, sweat and tears can be taken away from you. It will take a long time to digest that.”
“I don’t think we’ll ever get over it, especially Lewis as a driver. We can at least try, together with the FIA, to do better in the future. There has to be clarity about the rules before the start of the new season so that every driver, every team and every fan knows what is allowed and what is not. At the end of the day, we are providing entertainment, but no decision should break the rules for the sake of the show,” Wolff added.
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For the time being, Toto Wolff has cautioned that the mystery surrounding Lewis Hamilton‘s possible shock retirement from Formula One would continue. The Mercedes team chief is said to have met with the FIA’s new president Mohammed Ben Sulayem last Friday to resolve the situation, while Hamilton is said to be training and resting in Colorado amid social media silence. Wolff told the Kronen Zeitung newspaper that the seven-time world champion just needs time to process how he lost the 2021 championship to Max Verstappen.
“No matter what obstacle has been put in Lewis’ way, he’s known all his life that he has to do his speaking on the track,” the Austrian said. “Mind you, it’s incredibly difficult for him until he finds the path for him between right and wrong. He just needs time. At the latest, we will meet again in February, and it will not be to drink tequila. I had enough of that in Abu Dhabi,” the Mercedes boss added.
