Red Bull 'stretched beyond belief' by 'annihilators' Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes

Abu Dhabi, Hamilton, Verstappen — Photo: © LAT Images

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Red Bull 'stretched beyond belief' by 'annihilators' Hamilton and Mercedes

Verstappen defeated Hamilton to take his maiden F1 title

Ian Parkes & Ewan Gale

Tuesday 21 December 2021 08:00

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has claimed his team was "stretched beyond what we thought we were capable of" by Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton in F1 this year.

Max Verstappen took his maiden drivers' championship in dramatic style with a last-lap overtake on Hamilton in Abu Dhabi, rounding out a season where the Dutchman won more races and clinched more poles and podiums than any other driver.

The title was Red Bull's fifth since joining F1 as a constructor in 2005 after Sebastian Vettel won four in a row for the Milton Keynes-based team between 2010 and 2013, but Verstappen's triumph marked the first time Mercedes failed to come out on top in the turbo-hybrid era.

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Asked how the success compared to Vettel's championships, Horner replied: "It's always difficult to make comparisons.

"The first title was very special because that was against the odds as well. This one feels equally as special as that very first title.

"The intensity and the competitiveness of this one has been insane and the fact it's been against the quality of opposition we've had, in both Lewis and the Mercedes team, has stretched us beyond what we even thought we were capable of.

"That's what makes it even more rewarding. During the hybrid era Mercedes has been all dominant, they've annihilated the opposition, and finally, we've managed to produce a competitive car, and Max has grabbed it with both hands.

"To manage to come out on top with the biggest title on offer in motorsport is a tremendously proud moment for us, and obviously we're tremendously proud of what Max has achieved."