Toto Wolff claims Lewis Hamilton 'SHOULD HAVE' record eighth F1 trophy

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen talk after Abu Dhabi 2021 GP — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Wolff claims Hamilton 'SHOULD HAVE' record eighth F1 trophy

The 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix remains controversial

Originally written by Sheona Mountford. This version is a translation.

Saturday 25 January 2025 21:00

Toto Wolff has once again hit out at the baffling decision-making which robbed Lewis Hamilton of a record eighth Formula 1 world title.

The last race of the 2021 season saw the championship snatched away from the then-Mercedes driver in heartbreaking, and incredibly controversial, fashion.

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Hamilton led the majority of the race until a crash from Nicholas Latifi brought out a safety car, where the champion stayed out on worn tyres whilst his rival Verstappen pitted for a new set.

Despite the fact not all lapped cars had un-lapped themselves, Masi allowed one more lap of racing, during which Verstappen overtook Hamilton before the finish line to claim his first world title.

The 2021 Abu Dhabi GP remains controversial

Max Verstappen claimed the title in 2021

Wolff slams Abu Dhabi 2021 decision

Whilst the team boss did not name Masi specifically, he slammed the ‘referee’ for not following the rule book, and claimed that both Hamilton and Verstappen were both deserving champions.

“Five laps from the end we are world champions. There is no scenario otherwise. Then, someone decides the way the world championship should end with the last lap,” Wolff said on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast.

“Unlapping the cars in the middle is unheard of. Both drivers were deserving champions because it was up and down during the season. And both should have been world champions.

Toto Wolff blasts the unheard of decision in Abu Dhabi

“We had the better car and driver in Lewis at the end of the year, and Max was better in the first. They should have both had the trophy. But on that day in that race it fell the other way.

“It was so clear that the referee decided to do something that was not in the rule book. But it was in the madness of it.”

Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton Mercedes Toto Wolff