Red Bull team boss Christian Horner considers Max Verstappen to be a worthy world champion despite the controversial scenes at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
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Mercedes boss hopes that the “robbed” Lewis Hamilton will continue to drive
According to Red Bull boss Christian Horner, the “brief memories” of fans and critics will forget the controversial end of the dramatic Formula 1 season in 2021.
Max Verstappen secured his first world title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix under dramatic and controversial circumstances after he and title rival Lewis Hamilton tied into the season finale at the Yas Marina Circuit.
The Dutchman overtook the seven-time world champion, who had dominated most of the race, on the final lap when a late safety car came out after an accident involving Nicholas Latifi, which allowed Verstappen to pit and change tires as momentum swayed in his favor.
Christian Horner reiterated his stance that Max Verstappen deserved the F1 title
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The 24-year-old approached the British early in the single-round shootout and secured the first championship of his career.
Mercedes’ anger was mainly directed at FIA Race Director Michael Masi after he decided not to let cars drive out of their own accord as usual only to change his mind to organize the final lap showdown between Hamilton and Verstappen.
The epic but controversial conclusion to the race and season is still being aggressively denied by fans, but Horner believes people will eventually move on.
“The people in this business have such a very short memory,” Horner said, quoted by GPFans. “We even forgot what happened.” [earlier in the year]. It’s been such a long racing season.
Mercedes said they made a mistake in choosing George Russell to partner with Lewis Hamilton, Lewis Hamilton said he was lucky in the F1 title race despite the heartbreaking defeat in Abu Dhabi
“Max is an absolutely deserved world champion. Obviously, if you look at the championship as a whole, the events in Abu Dhabi caused a lot of buzz, but that happens in sport.
“We had a lot of bad luck last year, we were lucky with a safety car, we made the right strategic decisions, made a great strategy, great teamwork and a great performance by Max, and we won the race.
‘Time will go on. Max is a well-deserved world champion, we are incredibly proud of that and the history books will always show that he is the 2021 world champion. “
Mercedes lodged protests, which were dismissed by the FIA, and the team decided on December 16, four days after the events, to withdraw its official appeal.
Max Verstappen won his first world title in a dramatic manner in Abu Dhabi
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The news of her retirement confirmed Verstappen as the 2021 world champion with Hamilton, who brings together the most titles in F1 history with seven world championships with Michael Schumacher, has not yet broken his silence on social media.
And Verstappen has confirmed Horner’s comments for insisting that controversy is simply part of the sport.
“Even with championships that were won 30 years ago or whatever, there was also controversy,” said Verstappen. “When people look back on the footage today, they enjoy it. It’s just part of the sport. “
The defending champion will again be one of the strong favorites for the title in 2022, especially since the Red Bull car will likely fit the aerodynamically-heavy regulatory changes, as its technical director Adrian Newey is a top-class aerodynamicist.
F1 will return for pre-season testing on February 23rd in 2022 before the inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix on March 20th.
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