Lewis Hamilton’s future in Formula 1 is uncertain following the “pain” of his championship defeat last weekend, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has admitted.
Mercedes has decided not to proceed with an appeal over the controversial end to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Hamilton was overtaken by championship rival Max Verstappen following a restart on the final lap which the team insist contravened F1’s regulations.Hamilton will not participate in today’s FIA prizegiving ceremony, which he is required by the regulations to attend having finished second in the world championship. Wolff has also decided to skip the ceremony. “I won’t be there because of my loyalty to Lewis and because of my own personal integrity,” he explained.
The seven-times champion has not discussed the conclusion to the championship besides brief comments to Formula 1’s official broadcaster before the podium ceremony. He signed a new two-year deal to drive for Mercedes in July, but the team’s anger over the season finale has prompted speculation he may not return.
Wolff said “I would very much hope that Lewis continues racing, because he is the greatest driver of all time,” but admitted the outcome of Sunday’s race hit his driver hard.
“When you look at it from the point of view of the last four races, he dominated on Sunday. There was not even a doubt who won the race and that was worthy of winning the world championship. So we will be working through the events over the next weeks and months.”
The Mercedes team principal is hopeful Hamilton will continue. “I think, as a racer, his heart will say ‘I need to continue’, because he’s at the peak of his game,” he said. “But we have to overcome the pain that was caused upon him on Sunday, also because he is a man with clear values, it’s difficult to understand that happened.”
“Lewis and I are disillusioned at the moment,” he explained. “Not disillusioned of the sport, we love the sport with every bone in our body, and we love it because the stopwatch never lies.
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“But if we break that fundamental principle of sporting fairness and authenticity of the sport then suddenly the stopwatch doesn’t become relevant anymore because we are exposed to random decision-making, then it’s clear that you fall out of love with it. You start to question if all the work that you have been putting in, all the sweat, tears and blood, can actually be demonstrated in terms of bringing the best possible performances on track, because it can be taken away randomly.
“So it’s going to take a long time to digest what has happened on Sunday. I don’t think we will ever [get] over it. That’s not possible. And certainly not him as a driver.
“I would very much hope that the two of us and the rest of the team, we can work through the events, we can – together with the FIA and with Formula 1 – utilise the situation to improve the sport going forward. But he will never overcome the pain and the distress that was caused on Sunday.”
Wolff said he still struggled to believe the turn the race took in the final laps before the Safety Car was brought it.
“When I rethink the situation that at 18:27, the right decision was being taken – that no cars will un-lap themselves – and four minutes later, out of nowhere, suddenly five cars were allowed to un-lap themselves between Lewis and Max. And 10 seconds later, the decision was made that the Safety Car would come in this lap with a handful of laps only left.
“To be honest, for me, that still seems like a nightmare. That’s why I was in total disbelief on Sunday and I am still until today.”
“On a human level, it is extremely difficult because it is so disappointing,” he added. “As I said before, we love the sport and then suddenly you’re starting to question.
“I mean, you must never lose the big context of life – this is just Formula 1, it’s just a sport, much worse things happen out there and we shouldn’t fall into the trap of thinking this is the most important thing in the world.
“But it is our little microcosm and it’s a microcosm that we have been part of where we have created values and beliefs and many of those values and beliefs were kicked on Sunday.”
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2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
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- The omission in the FIA’s Abu Dhabi report which may store up trouble for the future
- How F1’s greenest debutant defied his doubters and left as its most experienced racer
Sham (@sham)
16th December 2021, 12:46
I do wonder if the FIA have any idea of the harm they have done to this sport by their actions – throughout 2021, but Brazil and Abu Dhabi in particular.
It’s devastating to the integrity of the sport.
Alan Dove
16th December 2021, 12:50
It’s not devastating to the integrity of the sport if it wasn’t high in integrity in the first place. No real lasting damage has been inflicted.
Don’t forget Merc signed off on of basically becoming a franchise locking in 10 teams at the exclusion of anyone new ($200m buy-in). F1 is basically the ‘Super League’ model football fans were so angry about last year
drmouse (@drmouse)
16th December 2021, 14:21
It may not have been that high before, but it’s still taken a massive hit. It has sunk to a new low, at least in the eyes of a lot of fans (many of whom are neutrals in the MV/LH fight and not Brits).
Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
17th December 2021, 4:52
“F1 is basically the ‘Super League’ model football fans were so angry about last year”
Well it sort of always has been no? Haha, but yes, not a sport with high levels of integrity to start with….only difference is nowadays, plenty of people in the sport a measuring the size of their Halos.
A lot of people love to hate Bernie, when he was just the embodiment of what F1 was and still is.
Mike
17th December 2021, 12:36
Having a contract hasn’t stopped manufactures from saying F—- it we are done with this sport. We have seen manufacturers not join because they see the insane amount of money that must be spent in order to win in this sport and now you have race officials changing rules on the fly. Why would you join if you can find a cheaper way to brand your product that will also cause you less of a headache that is F1.
Mayrton
16th December 2021, 12:56
I agree. Still I think they only see the nr of spectators rise.
elchinero (@elchinero)
16th December 2021, 13:36
True dat. The wailing and gnashing of teeth make my day, every day. One would think that it was a mother that got dissed.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
16th December 2021, 13:08
+1
F1 is dead from a sports perspective. In my opinion Lewis and Mercedes got betrayed by race-control, and to me this does not look like a mistake. They wanted a new champion and used the chance to gift the trophy to Max. Its a disgrace beyond words.
Mike
16th December 2021, 19:09
Absolutely, I’ve loved following F1 all my life, but that’s it for me now, and I suspect for thousands of others. What’s the point when the outcome is not decided by the best driver or the best car or the best team but is solely decided by the race director and his flexible rule book. It’s not just Lewis that should leave F1, Mercedes should withdraw the team.
F1ed (@rinodina)
16th December 2021, 21:59
Why don’t you write them an email?
Rob (@)
17th December 2021, 3:01
How do you square this with Mercedes’ complete dominance of everything. Even if it that’s completely fair in terms of the constructors championship (a separate issue), it’d completely ruined the driver’s championship. How many people stopped watching because only two drivers had a realistic chance for five or six of the previous seven years? That did far more to ruin f1 from a sporting perspective than a mistake in a very difficult situation by the race director.
How you feel right now is how everyone who doesn’t support your driver has felt for the better part of a decade. If we could deal with it, so can you
Mike
17th December 2021, 12:39
Maybe their favorite team should have done a better job building a competitive car.
Sviat
16th December 2021, 14:01
@sham – No, there’s no harm. This show is in the best form in the last 8 years because Verstappen won. The majority of fans won’t care how he won. They only care that it happened. And as long as Verstappen is winning, they will be with the show.
Other things, such as integrity, rules or decision-making have no value. Well, probably to 0.001% of the entire fan base those things are meaningful.
Sham (@sham)
16th December 2021, 14:12
I sincerely hope you’re wrong. All the fans I’ve grown up with are knowledgeable, intelligent and only interested in the sporting spectacle.
It’s this kind of falsification that they hate.
If we’re the 0.0001% you think we are, then I’ll have to find something else to do with my time – because I won’t be back for more of this.
drmouse (@drmouse)
16th December 2021, 14:22
+1
faulty (@faulty)
16th December 2021, 14:44
Hamilton may still be working out the contractual paperwork that lets him go live life without artificial drama, but I have the luxury of not worryng about that.
Goodbye F1, thanks for the 35 years.
F1ed (@rinodina)
16th December 2021, 22:00
And goodbye to you too.
Aapje (@aapje)
17th December 2021, 15:06
@sham
The fans you know aren’t necessarily the majority or even a significant factor.
Just look at the impact that all the scandals have had on the success of the Olympics. People still watch.
Sam (@undercut677)
16th December 2021, 14:38
@sham Nah, thats a bit too dramatic. They will make changes based on this and their viewership will now go through the roof. There will be no lasting effect negative effects from this going forward except for pro-Merc fines whining about this for years to come.
Mark in Florida
17th December 2021, 2:35
(@undercut677) All this drama from the Merc faction. Its pathetic. If the roles were reversed everything would have been alright because Lewis and Mercedes used the red flag to get tires and the race director allowed Lewis a chance to win it on the track instead of a no challenge safety car finish. It all depends on what team you’re rooting for and who it benefited. Like the song from Five Finger Death Punch says its all Shampain.
Broom (@)
16th December 2021, 17:43
@sham on the contrary, F1 blogs are full with emotional Hamilton fans hoping he will exact revenge next season and you’d be a fool to bet against him. The classic revenge arc will be everywhere in 2022 despite the fact Masi was favourable to Hamilton over the course of the season.
Broderick Harper (@banbrorace)
17th December 2021, 10:46
Explain “favourable”
At Silverstone virtually anybody who was anybody, thought it a racing incident. Yes. If anyone’s getting punished then it’s Hamilton – but he certainly wasn’t favoured.
At Brazil he starts to overtake Vettel and basically gets dumped off the track and the incident isn’t even looked at.
But please tell us all the “favourable” incidents, i.e. ones he got away with and all other drivers didn’t.
RJ7
17th December 2021, 15:21
regarding Silverstone: tainted glasses much? Or not watching F1 long enough? I don’t get how you explain F1 rules different if Hamilton is the subject? Clearly a fault of Hamilton to me – and at least according to “everybody who was everybody” – oh please
BasCB (@bascb)
16th December 2021, 12:48
I cannot imagine Hamilton will not want to come back and win it back even more now.
Red Andy (@red-andy)
16th December 2021, 12:59
Agree @bascb. Particularly if, as reports suggest, he was instrumental in Mercedes’ decision to drop their appeal. He knows the real talking is done on track.
Simon (@simon999)
16th December 2021, 13:06
I think Toto is just doing what any top team boss would at this point. He’s painting the best possible narrative for his team/driver, by making extremely clear how much it affected them and that they are reflecting on their futures as a result, so that when they do all agree to fight again next year, they already have a bit of a psyche boost.
Furthermore, they must know they have the opportunity to influence things for next year in a positive way (and to their own benefit, since stricter enforcement likely has the impact of reigning in Max/RB very slightly), so it makes sense for them to lay it on thick now to make sure the FIA takes it seriously.
Sham (@sham)
16th December 2021, 13:26
I hope you’re right. One thing is for sure – if he does come back and the car is competitive, he will be nigh on unbeatable.
mystic one (@mysticus)
17th December 2021, 12:56
One part me of says hope he doesn’t come back and never show up any more F1 debacles to show them what disrespect means.
Other part of me, ham come back strong, and show max a few of his own medicines and every single race say f masi f fia words on his dash or on his helmet in an elegant way. Like they did it on the Abu Dhabi race.
MrBoerns (@mrboerns)
16th December 2021, 14:05
I don’t know. The way things stand now, with merc letting it go, F1 and the FIA are unpunished for this farce. If they suddenly have to explain the most successful (and most globally marketable) driver walk away the at the very least get the big ‘F you’ they deserve…
asherway (@asherway)
16th December 2021, 14:32
@mrboerns – most globally marketable? Source??
Poor Lewis. Poor poor Lewis. He gets 4 freebie ‘titles’ on the trot and then has to deal with the complete unfairness of having to race. Having to compete. Can you imagine?! It’s just not right is it.
Merc got too cocky with the PU sandbags this year. Add to that the continued mistreatment of Bottas who left his number 1 hanging at the final hour. Had Bottas been up there competing Max wouldn’t have had the space to pit at every VSC / SC. Had they not treated him like a lapdog consistently, or even better, had they signed a driver at least half worthy of that car, would things have ended differently? Will Merc have the ‘integrity’ to look in the mirror and consider how they really lost this year??
The truth is that Lewis will be loving the equity he gets out of this as a victim. He is the Megan Rapinoe of F1, he lives to be seen as a victim. Making hundreds of millions along the way…
All this dummy spitting is truly hilarious. After 7 years of anti-competitive dominance, NOW F1 is a show?? Lewis loses for the first time in 5 and NOW it’s manipulated?? I guess that red pill doesn’t go down so easy eh?
neiana
16th December 2021, 15:12
@asherway look, I have my issues with Lewis but comparing him to Rapinoe is a disservice as Rapinoe constantly lies, misinforms and manipulates for more money that she uses privately.
Lewis puts his money where his mouth is. I would love to go disc golfing with Hamilton (never Toto) but Rapinoe? She might have to fork over a few million for me to even RSVP
asherway (@asherway)
16th December 2021, 15:30
Ha! That’s fair. But if (when?) Lewis dies his hair purple we’ll have to revisit this…
Steve (@)
16th December 2021, 16:43
I think Lewis has been utterly dignified but Wolf has been pathetic. What supreme arrogance to say it wasn’t worth it because they were denied thus event when teams like Williams, Sauber and Hass sweat blood for a single point while a huge corporation throw billions at the sport and hoover up the sponsors in an attempt to dominate.
koddamn (@gufdamm)
16th December 2021, 17:08
Commentators like this are a perfect example of F1’s new target market. Read how he ignores the obvious reasonable grievances and goes on about everything except the actual racing. He loves the drama more than the racing itself. He is entertained by the drama and the personalities and not the racing.
Yes, Lewis won championships unchallenged, but he did so within the rules of the sport. It is a sport, so therefore athletes, and in this case teams and their cars can and will dominate. We agree with you it becomes unappealing to watch. It is sport, it can’t be entertainment 24/7. I’d argue many other sports are quite boring the majority of the time. But we love cars and we always find action somewhere around the track.
…But the fact of the matter is, the rules of the sport were conveniently ignored by an official of the sport, and the governing body is more concerned about the image of the brand than the integrity of the sport. Entertainment before sport is where their values lie. This is the problem, if we consider it a sport still.
asherway (@asherway)
16th December 2021, 20:25
@gufdamm – I ignored the obvious grievances because I think they are completely baseless. It’s clearly stated in the rules that the RD has final authority over the use of the safety car. The regs cannot account for every conceivable situation so they are at times written to allow for improvisation, and in this case, to protect the officials. It’s basically a ‘no correspondence will be entered into’ allowance. Of course it is exploitable, but given the complete inconsistency in decision making this year, and the fact that both drivers were penalised (and not) across the course of the season, it seems more likely that a late race incident had a huge impact on this result, and that it was not a concerted manipulation to achieve a specific outcome.
So I disagree with this notion that the rules were broken. The teams were told ahead of the race that finishing under green would be a priority. Merc decided not to pit given the information they had but it was still a risk. Similar to the risk Norris took in Russia by staying out. Sometimes when things go sideways (a late race SC or rain shower) it’s advantageous to be in 2nd and simply react to what the leader does. Abu Dhabi was simply another of many examples like this and not the injustice of the century as many like to claim.
Regarding the racing, the hybrid era has been a disaster. Before that, DRS, for me, is where the ‘sport’ deteriorated and it’s been on the slide since. But I didn’t hear many Hamilton fans complaining about it until this week.
F1ed (@rinodina)
16th December 2021, 22:03
+1
Broderick Harper (@banbrorace)
17th December 2021, 10:56
So you basically agree with the rules been manipulated so the just the top two can race for a lap.
But then again, as you think that Hamilton’s 2017 to 2019 titles were “freebie titles”, you clearly don’t know anything about F1 anyway.
Felix
16th December 2021, 12:53
Lewis Hamilton ,Rusell and wolffe and mercedes we still rise
Bulgarian (@bulgarian)
16th December 2021, 13:00
And Michael Masi will again put them into dirt.
Cobray (@)
16th December 2021, 13:07
LOL
TurboBT
16th December 2021, 13:55
Michael Masi won’t be RD next year, even if he is there he would act like a scared rabbit and unable to do his job properly.
Kimberley Barrass
16th December 2021, 12:54
I’ve got to believe that next year Hamilton will be back and incredibly motivated .. – not sure about the year after – If he wins he retires on 8. If he loses because the car isn’t competitive or Russell beats him – would he really want to go again?
Craig
16th December 2021, 14:51
He’ll be amazingly motivated, possibly at his most devastatingly fast. Only a fool underestimates Hamilton, the fact he came from behind against what had been the faster car to tie things ahead of the last round and should have won on merit says it all.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
16th December 2021, 19:05
Think hamilton has a chance to prove he’s a worthy multiple champion next year, he surprised me this 2nd half of the year, considering his age, and having a competitive championship campaign next year against a strong driver in the same car and other strong drivers in other cars (assuming they can get it right), with the possibility to get wins in a car that might not be the best in a given weekend, that’s the stuff where you can see if a driver is actually strong or if it was just the car.
MattDS (@mattds)
16th December 2021, 22:10
Who are you people that somehow think Hamilton defeated the odds this year?
Fact of the matter is the Mercedes overall was the better car. Yes, the RBR overall was the better car in the first 9 races of the season, but somehow all his fans didn’t see how the Mercedes easily took over after that.
Especially since Italy it was nigh on dominant – only in Mexico was the Red Bull better.
Tallying the races?
Red Bull was faster in Portugal, Monaco, Baku, Styria and Austria, Holland and Mexico. That’s 7.
They were pretty much even in Bahrain, Imola, France, Great-Britain, and the USA. That’s 5.
Mercedes were faster in Spain, Hungary, Italy, Russia, Turkey, Brazil, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. That’s 9.
The reason “Hamilton came back from behind” was Max being crashed out in Silverstone and Hungary, having a tyre fail on him in Baku, and the Mercedes taking over as the best car. It’s quite telling of the fantastic season Max had that he was even tied going into the title decider. He pulled results that he sometimes shouldn’t have – and Lewis threw a bucket of good points away (Baku, Monaco, Austria and arguably even Imola). If Lewis hadn’t thrown those away, and given Max’s bad luck, Lewis shouldn’t even have needed a result in Abu Dhabi anymore.
And even in Abu Dhabi Lewis could have done better. Because make what you want of the race director decision to let them race for a final lap, what all his fans seem to be forgetting is that Lewis could have protected himself against even that if he hadn’t been so overly cautious against a so much slower Checo. He initially stormed past without losing too much time, but then failed to cover off the inside at the end of the first straight and allowed Checo back past. He should never have let Checo dive back on the inside. That was a huge mistake, if he had covered the inside he would’ve stormed off in the distance instead of losing 8 seconds behind Checo. Those 8 seconds would have undoubtedly let him have a free stop for fresh softs and would’ve seen him take the title.
And even then on the last racing lap he allowed Max to overtake where he did. If the roles have been reversed, you can bet Max would have covered that off too. And with the straight line speed of the Mercedes he might even have kept the lead.
The Mercedes was the better car this year, but the Red Bull was competitive enough to allow Max, who definitely was the best driver this year, to fight for the title.
Todfod (@todfod)
17th December 2021, 4:58
@mattds
I’d agree mostly, although I would put Red Bull faster in Bahrain and Mercedes faster in Portugal.
Mayrton
17th December 2021, 9:47
Well said. +1
Mayrton
16th December 2021, 12:58
Lewis will go to Ferrari for his 8th. That will be epic
Domo
16th December 2021, 13:07
i wish
TurboBT
16th December 2021, 13:58
Lewis is not better than sainz or leclerc anymore. He was lewis because merc that he is driving suits him 100%. He cannot start somewhere else from 0 and dominate, because he is not young anymore. That’s what vettel faced when he raced against leclerc.
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
16th December 2021, 14:18
More likely, back to McLaren to win his 8th where it all began…
…I wish!
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 12:58
Hamilton will not attend the FIA gala this evening. That is a breach of article 6.6 of F1’s Sporting Regulations.
Protesting a perceived breach of the regulations by breaking the regulations is neither fair, nor sporting, nor particularly smart.
FIA sanctions incoming.
Bulgarian (@bulgarian)
16th December 2021, 13:02
FIA can put their sanctions into… you know where. Who cares about FIA, now?!
erikje
16th December 2021, 15:55
so that’s a change of hart. So it depends on who is to profit in your eyes.
If rule bending is favoring lewis there is no problem.
Hypocrites always betray themselves.
But at least next year we will do without you.
Happy Holidays..
Cynic (@callmeacynic)
16th December 2021, 13:02
It’ll be part of the agreement with Mercedes not to appeal and drag the FIA through the mud that they won’t have to attend the gala, I’d expect.
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 13:13
That would be even weirder. The FIA secretly colluding with a team and a driver to cicrumvent the rules. Isn’t that exactly the sort of thing a lot of people have been shouting against?
This paints a really bad picture: Wolff and Hamilton feel so entitled, that when they do lose, they see no obligation to play by the rules, because these rules obviously don’t apply to them. It demonstrates that the contents of the letter were just PR.
Or maybe Wolff and Hamilton were overruled within the Mercedes organisation, because what they are saying and doing clearly contradicts the letter.
OlaRay
16th December 2021, 13:51
Hmmmm so tell me what do you think was going on when Masi asked Christian Hoerner at the Saudi Arabian GP which one does he want (1) A Penalty or (2) Dropping behind Lewis at the restart???
Sviat
16th December 2021, 14:04
You are absolutely incredible in how you ignore the facts. And how did they lose? Probably, because the rules were changed at the very last moment to give the win to competitors?
If the FIA doesn’t follow their own rules, why should others?
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 14:15
Look at the official results of the race. Hamilton lost. Verstappen won. Those are the facts.
sanches (@petax)
16th December 2021, 14:28
Oh come on, what rules?
I am sure that if there is a penalty they can both afford to pay it.
In the current covid situation I think Galas such as that are probably best avoided anyway.
erikje
16th December 2021, 15:58
Nice touch.. if lewis refuses his second place it will go tho Valtteri. Well deserved for a year long being used as maidservant
And Checo third.. nice touch indeed.
Go lewis!
ian dearing
16th December 2021, 13:08
Yes, I mentioned this on a previous thread. The FIA and certain members of the F1 press can now put aside the events of last weekend and concentrate on what really matters. Sanctioning Hamilton for his part in this saga.
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 13:16
Did I misunderstand all the screaming and shouting of the last days? I thought is was about playing by the rules.
ian dearing
16th December 2021, 13:29
Yes, but you and many others have argued that the rules don’t matter anymore. It’s about who ‘deserves it’, sometimes about ‘karma’, and usually a big dollop of whataboutism. But the big difference is I believe if the rules are broken things should be put right, and those that broke the rules should be punished. Quite happy to listen to the demands that Hamilton should have his achievements this year expunged from the record books as a punishment.
gardenfella (@gardenfella72)
16th December 2021, 13:49
@ ian dearing
Got it. So Max should have been penalised for his lunges at Brazil and Abu Dhabi. I concur
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 16:54
Where have I said the “rules don’t matter anymore”. That is nonsense.
I think the misconception may be that a lot of people think only some rules should apply, mostly those in favor of their team and their driver. These should always be followed to the letter. These people then ignore all other rules, especially those rules, which may supercede their favorite rule. This then evolves to these people thinking that the FIA etc., who think all rules should apply, don’t follow the rules.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
16th December 2021, 13:35
rules no longer exist, as we know now
erikje
16th December 2021, 16:00
So lewis bending the rules ( max did not!) is no problem.
Yep, hypocrite sensed ;)
Jake (@j4k3)
16th December 2021, 13:19
I believe the reg says that “any driver who finishes in the top 3 must attend the gala”. As we know, any doesn’t mean all.
H-Bomb
16th December 2021, 13:28
That made me laugh.
Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
16th December 2021, 13:34
Thanks for the laugh, I needed it.
Mr Fabulous (@mrfabulous)
16th December 2021, 13:39
@j4k3 Ha ha ha! 😁
Olivier
16th December 2021, 13:52
LOL, EPIC. Thank you!
Hotbottoms (@hotbottoms)
16th December 2021, 14:03
@j4k3
That’s right. Also, I think FIA officials have the authority to override 6.6 of the sporting regulations. According to the sporting regulations:
“”FIA Gala Buffet Organizer shall have overriding authority in the following matters:
[…]
e) the annual FIA Prize Giving ceremony””
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
16th December 2021, 14:32
If Hamilton attended the gala I can just imagine him reaching for the last sausage roll when, unexpectedly, Michael Massi shouts “Oi, Lewis” and Max jumps in and grabs it…
Miguel Bento (@miguelbento)
16th December 2021, 15:07
Brilliant!!!!
HT Onk (@pweb87)
16th December 2021, 15:23
😂 nice
DeanR
16th December 2021, 16:06
Quality +1
Kimberley Barrass
17th December 2021, 9:46
Outstanding
Simon
16th December 2021, 13:21
What could possibly be the penalty for this?
5 place penalty for the queue for the buffet at the next FIA event?
Sonny Crockett (@sonnycrockett)
16th December 2021, 14:34
No vol-au-vents.
HT Onk (@pweb87)
16th December 2021, 15:25
Mandatory drinking contest against Kimi
melanos
17th December 2021, 20:06
That’s would be fixed and unfair
Maybe an ice cream eating competition? In gorilla suits?
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
16th December 2021, 13:27
@uzsjgb well, they can enforce it but since they can’t enforce their own rules in the race…
What would be great is the FIA doesn’t allow Verstappen to show up. Following Abu Dhabi, that would be the next logical action by the FIA. In Max’s and Lewis’ absence, the championship is randomly given to one of the F1 drivers present and Tsunoda wins the WDC in his rookie year! Fully deserved especially given his monster drive at Abu Dhabi!
Now, that would be awesome and I think the proper finale to the season. Plus the world would get to see Horner’s sportsmanship as he runs and tackles Yuki onstage.
Jay (@slightlycrusty)
16th December 2021, 14:13
@uzsjgb are those regulations, or merely suggestions? It’s so hard to follow FIA proclamations these days.
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 14:18
When in doubt, don’t follow proclamations or forum posts.
You can download the sporting regulations directly from the FIA website. The rule in question is 6.6: “The drivers finishing first, second and third in the Championship must be present at the annual FIA Prize Giving ceremony.”
I was slightly bemused that there would be a rule for this in the sporting regulations.
Jay (@slightlycrusty)
16th December 2021, 14:29
@uzsjgb If there’s one thing we’ve learned this year, it’s that FIA regulations don’t need to be followed.
Jake (@j4k3)
16th December 2021, 14:32
Its almost as if they want to make the procedures that need to be followed clear so that no one can randomly do their own thing at any point.
F1 is fixed
16th December 2021, 14:29
I’d pay good money to watch Lewis turn up, get drunk and then tell the lot of them what he really thinks about there so called sport… perhaps next year on Netflix.. who knows, F1 has entered the fake reality TV genre after all.
drmouse (@drmouse)
16th December 2021, 14:30
I think it would be very rich for the FIA to penalise him for breaking the rules on a non-race matter when they are no penalising their race director for ignoring the rules on. I think the FIA will stay silent on the matter, because anything they bring up about it would just highlight their own hypocrisy.
Kub
16th December 2021, 15:32
I sure hope so. Lewis should not be above the law.
erikje
16th December 2021, 16:04
His “fans” seem to think otherwise.
Lewis is saint so whatever he does must be alright.
Rules only go for other drivers and especially the ones that dared to pass him on track!
Bulgarian (@bulgarian)
16th December 2021, 12:58
There is no sense to continue. He can be robbed of anything (All!), anywhere and by any Race Director – The God Himself Michael Masi.
Cynic (@callmeacynic)
16th December 2021, 12:59
When Hamilton gave his post-race interview and was asked about next season, his “We’ll see” response felt like an indication he was done, and in the heat of the moment I don’t blame him.
However, I hope that upon reflection he has still got the desire to come back next season and try and win the title back.
mark
16th December 2021, 13:01
nobody talks about the disgrace of not attending the fia gala?
Bulgarian (@bulgarian)
16th December 2021, 13:04
Why take part in a Cheaters gala?! Hamilton is not a cheater. He doesn’t belong among them.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
16th December 2021, 13:12
+1
why attend the gala of the ones who betrayed you? makes no sense. cheaters can celebrate theirselves.
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 13:20
Breaking the rules to prove you do not break the rules or are better than the “rule-breakers” and “cheaters” defeats the purpose.
On top of that it gives the whole world the chance to point at Hamilton and say he is a sore loser.
Hamilton has carried himself with dignity during this whole affair, I would have hoped he would have continued along this path.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
16th December 2021, 13:39
any driver will show up, so there must be some misunderstanding by some fans…
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 13:51
Read the rules and don’t base your opinions on jokes made by other posters.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
16th December 2021, 13:56
i dont care to read up some rules for this. showing up at a cheaters gala is not necessary in my opinion. and when there are consequences sobeit. cheaters can celebrate theirselves well enough i guess.
erikje
16th December 2021, 16:06
@romtrain
after days fuming this is your conclusion… you could have spared us and yourself a lot of rubbish.
uzsjgb (@uzsjgb)
16th December 2021, 16:59
@romtrain
I know. With people like you it really is never about rules or fairness or sportsmanship. And you have no shame publicly admitting that.
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
16th December 2021, 13:56
@uzsjgb you sound young and unaware of life
erikje
16th December 2021, 16:07
He talks about things outside your scoop of comprehension… (thats something easy to do btw..)
But lets do it your way.. if no arguments then Ad hominem is the way to go.
sad…
Stefan
16th December 2021, 13:27
First complaint of Mercedes. Rules are applied wrong because it limits racing (easy to say over the past years when you are way ahead of competition). Now a rule is applied to facilitate racing and you complain because you lose. Many fans seem to forget that they (Mercedes/ Lewis) wanted racing first….