F1 2021 retro: highlights of the Verstappen-Hamilton duel (2/2)

Spa-Zandvoort: Victorious return for Verstappen

Verstappen does not let himself be defeated by the blows of fate and returns armed with new intentions. The Dutchman, who is not far from playing at home ahead of the Oranje Army who has already made the short trip to Spa-Francorchamps, takes a nice pole position in the rain in a session marked by the big crash of Norris and the feat of George Russell, 2nd at the wheel of his modest Williams. Hamilton must settle for 3rd place on the grid.

La F1 offered a sad spectacle in Belgium this year / © DPPI

The next day, F1 was drowned in ridicule and the wait for a hypothetical weather clearing which would have allowed the event to take place. After hours of waiting and two poor laps behind the Safety Car, just to declare that the race had taken place and therefore pocket the usual fees, Verstappen was declared the winner, ahead of Russell and Hamilton. Only half of the points are awarded.

A week later, the Dutch Grand Prix returned to the calendar for the first time since 1985. In front of the stands packed with hot Batavians and all in on the regional stage, Verstappen did not let himself be impressed by the pressure and delighted the crowd by snatching pole position before winning without firing a shot.

He took the opportunity to regain control of the Drivers' ranking for three small points. After a relatively calm return to school, the next round will revive dormant tensions.

Verstappen, prophet in his country / © DPPI

New collision at Monza

Scene of the 2nd Sprint of the season, the Autodromo Nazionale Monza will also be the scene of a new heated collision between the title candidates. THE Mercedes dominate Friday qualifying, Bottas ahead of Hamilton by a breath, while Verstappen is 3/10th away.

While the seven-time world champion had the opportunity to respond immediately to his Dutch rival after his victory at Zandvoort, Hamilton missed his start on Saturday afternoon and lost 4 places at the start of the Sprint. He will have to be satisfied with 5th final place, while Verstappen pockets 2 additional points by finishing behind an untouchable Bottas.

Promoted to pole position thanks to the Finn's grid penalty on Sunday, the driver Red Bull is surprised by the McLaren de Daniel Ricciardo when the lights go out. Verstappen is still racing to gain some air in the general classification when a bad pit stop causes him to slip behind Hamilton.

While the Mercedes driver returned to the track following also an average stop, his rival Red Bull burst onto the pit straight and tried to take advantage of the momentum to get back in front at the first chicane. Contact is inevitable and Verstappen ends up astride his opponent's W12, who can thank the Halo. The two contenders for the crown are forced to abandon.

Tension rises another notch in Italy… / © DPPI

Ricciardo, who led from the kick-off, wasn't asking for that much and went off to pick up a first success for McLaren in 9 years and took the opportunity to restore his image after a difficult adaptation on the Woking side. The success was even total for the British team since Norris allowed it to win the double.

McLaren will be the only team to have placed its two cars at the head of a Grand Prix in 2021. Incredible when we know the level of Mercedes and Red Bull but it was written that this campaign would not be like the others.

Hamilton, victory in the 100

Found mainly guilty of the collision at Monza, Verstappen must move back 3 places on the grid for the following event held in Sochi. Red Bull took the opportunity to fit him with a new Honda engine and make him start at the back of the peloton, with the hope of moving up as high as possible.

In a qualifying session organized on the wet road, it was Norris who won the race and took his first career pole position, ahead of his former McLaren teammate. Carlos Sainz, now at Ferrari. Russell impresses again with the 3rd fastest time, ahead of his future garage neighbor Hamilton, only 4th. The Mercedes driver missed his start again the next day and fell to 6th place, while Verstappen wasted no time in making his way through the peloton.

Finally moving up to 2nd position behind Norris, Hamilton made the right decision by listening to the instructions of his team who ordered him to stop as the rain began to appear in the final laps. While the McLaren driver drinks the cup, the seven-time world champion pockets a 100th career success.

Hamilton, a lively centenarian in Russia / © DPPI

However, he didn't benefit that much in the championship since that devil Verstappen took advantage of the very last laps to move from 7th to 2nd place in Intermediates. On the evening of the Russian event, Hamilton is two small points ahead of the Red Bull driver. Two weeks later, it was the Briton's turn to drop back on the grid due to an engine change. Mercedes, however, decides to introduce only one new element on its leader's propeller, which therefore only slips by around ten ranks. Author of the best time in qualifying, Hamilton started 11th in a Turkish Grand Prix contested in the rain.

Promoted to pole position, Bottas did not flinch, for once, and converted the offering into a 10th personal victory, ahead of the Red Bull duo Verstappen-Pérez, who was never able to compete with the leading Mercedes. Hamilton had to settle for 5th place under the checkerboard while he was in 3rd place for a while.

Mercedes preferred to secure the blow by bringing the Briton in for fresh tires, while the latter would have liked to continue to the end. Verstappen is back in front in the championship, and is preparing to widen a gap that one might have thought decisive.

Bottas was untouchable in Istanbul where the RB16Bs sported a Honda tribute livery / © DPPI

USA-Mexico: Max stands out again

For the first time since the appearance of the Covid-1 pandemic, F19 returns to the American continent. In front of 1 people gathered around the Circuit of the Americas in Austin (Texas) – a record – Verstappen took pole position, just ahead of Hamilton and his teammate Pérez.

The next day, we find the 3 in the same order after an intense strategic battle between the two candidates for the title. Hamilton had, however, taken the best lead to take control of the race at the cost of a good maneuver during the first braking. Red Bull responded by taking the initiative in the pits.

Verstappen's undercut worked and allowed the Dutchman to regain the lead position. Despite fresher tires at the end of the race, Hamilton will come up against his rival all the way to the checkered flag.

Author of a better start than his rival, Hamilton must however lose in Texas / © DPPI

Two weeks later in Mexico, Mercedes locks the first row of the grid with Bottas again faster than his leader. Verstappen, however, took advantage of the long straight at the start to go outside the two W12s.

The Dutchman emerges from a first stormy braking session at the controls of the Mexico event. He will not let go and will sign his 9th victory of the season, probably one of the most convincing with those gleaned in Austria at the start of summer.

Verstappen leaves the Mexican capital with 19 points ahead of Hamilton and a dynamic that is hard to see being interrupted, especially since the next round takes place in Brazil where the Batavian won in 2019 and where he would have must have won the season before as well. And yet…

Verstappen caught both Mercedes on first braking in Mexico / © DPPI

Brazil-Qatar-Saudi Arabia: Lewis’ crazy comeback

First twist at Interlagos: Mercedes decides to install a new thermal engine at the rear of Hamilton's W12, forced to move back 5 places on the Grand Prix grid. The German team chose the Brazilian event for such a change because it hosts the 3rd and final Sprint of the year.

Hamilton can therefore limit the damage since the grid penalty does not apply for the condensed format race. The seven-time world champion took advantage of his new equipment to very comfortably set the best time in Friday's qualifying. Hamilton was therefore preparing to start the Sprint in the lead when he was summoned by the commissioners of the Auriverde meeting.

The FIA ​​technical delegate indeed noted an irregularity in the DRS of his W12. At the same time, his rival Verstappen is also called before the stewards after the publication online of a video showing him inspecting Hamilton's rear wing a little too closely! After endless discussions, the Red Bull driver received a hefty fine of 50 euros, while his opponent was simply disqualified for a gap of 000 mm.

Promoted to the Sprint pole, Verstappen was surprised by Bottas at the start, the Finn pocketing a second success in this format which will be renewed next year. The Dutchman was content to secure 2nd place, synonymous with 2 additional points in the championship, while Hamilton made a spectacular comeback to finish 2th!

Pushed back to 10th place on the grid for the real Grand Prix due to his new engine, Hamilton is preparing to make an even more hair-raising comeback the next day. When the lights went out, Verstappen gave Bottas his due and took the lead in the first round. Hamilton barely needs 19 laps to move back into 2nd position.

On the 48th lap, the Mercedes driver tried to overtake his rival from the outside at turn 4, but the latter vigorously defended his position and the two drivers were forced to veer wide and outside the limits of the track. The commissioners do not flinch, which has the gift of annoying Mercedes. Hamilton ended up finding the opening around ten laps later, Verstappen being unable to do anything against the speed of the Mercedes.

In the country of his idol Ayrton Senna, Hamilton delights the Brazilian fans he has made his own / © DPPI

Two days after the race, and while the members of the paddock are in the process of reaching Qatar for the 3rd and final stage of a grueling triplet, Mercedes asks to use its right of review regarding the Verstappen-Hamilton duel that occurred on the 48th lap of the São Paulo GP.

F1 has shared new angles of the incident and the German team believes they constitute new evidence. Mercedes is mainly trying to find out what is tolerable on the track but the German team is ultimately rejected. The first Qatar Grand Prix in history was not without controversy as Verstappen received a 5-place grid penalty for failing to show a double yellow flag during qualifying.

In any case, the Red Bull driver did not have the means to compete with his rival Mercedes, a brilliant pole-sitter at Losail. Forced to start 6th, Verstappen took barely three laps to erase the impact of his sanction. Hamilton, however, had time to escape and could not be caught. In a GP marked by several punctures, Fernando Alonso signs his first podium in 7 years and accompanies Hamilton and Verstappen on the box.

The gap between the two candidates for the title is now only 8 points, the Dutchman having decided to stop at the end of the race to pocket the bonus point for the best lap in the race on fresh tires.

Despite strong tensions, Hamilton and Verstappen have always been able to maintain mutual respect / © DPPI

It is then up to Saudi Arabia to make its entry into the great concert of Formula 1 host nations. Built in eight short months, the Jeddah track is as fast and spectacular as it is potentially frightening. While he is on the verge of signing the lap of the year in Q3, Verstappen misses himself in the last corner and hits the wall at the start of the final straight.

This allows Mercedes to lock down the front row, with Hamilton narrowly edging Bottas. Despite his aborted last lap, Verstappen managed to snatch 3rd position on the grid. The first departure took place without incident and we thought we were heading towards a procession when the crash of Mick Schumacher (Haas) turns the race upside down. Called on track, the Safety Car turns into a red flag and allows Verstappen to take the lead, he who had not stopped to change tires under the Safety Car regime.

On the restart, Hamilton took off better but Verstappen resisted with all his being and retained the lead by biting outside the limits of the track at the first corner. Or with took the opportunity to sneak into 2nd position, while a spin from Pérez, pushed by Leclerc, triggered carnage behind, fortunately not serious.

During this 2nd red flag, race director Michael Masi found himself negotiating like a carpet merchant for Red Bull to agree to move Verstappen behind Hamilton on the future grid after his non-regulatory defense during the first braking. All good for Ocon who finds himself promoted to pole from the 3rd start. The Frenchman does not stay long as Verstappen slips into a mouse hole on the inside and overtakes Ocon and Hamilton in one go during the 3rd flight.

The weekend in Jeddah was particularly heated between the title contenders / © DPPI

A lap later, the Mercedes driver overtook theAlpine du Normand and sets off in pursuit of the leading Red Bull. On lap 37, Hamilton had closed enough and attempted a maneuver under first braking. Once again, Verstappen defends vigorously and finds himself cutting a corner that his opponent is at least trying to negotiate. Red Bull then orders its driver to let Hamilton pass.

A rather incredible scene follows where Verstappen lifts his foot on the straight but his rival, undoubtedly surprised but also anxious not to find himself under the threat of DRS in the start/finish straight, does not immediately take advantage of it. . Hamilton ends up hitting Verstappen, who then takes off.

Despite the shock, the two men can indeed continue. Penalized by 5 seconds for not having returned the position, the Red Bull driver executes a few loops later... before immediately passing his opponent again in the straight line that follows! Hamilton ends up having the last word when he overtakes Verstappen, who will also be penalized 10 seconds after the race for his untimely braking which led to the collision between the two heavyweights in the field.

Also author of the best lap in the race, Hamilton returns to a perfect tie on points with Verstappen – 369,5 units on each side – but the Dutchman retains the advantage in the number of victories since he has 9 successes against “only” 8 for his great rival. It is therefore in an electric and tense climate that the grand finale of this incredible 2021 season looms.

For the first time since 2016, the title was decided in the last race / © DPPI

A Dantesque and controversial finale

Such a hair-raising campaign deserved a grand finale. She's going to get it, even if the turn of events may leave a bitter taste. Dominant in free practice, Hamilton is favorite for pole position but a stratospheric lap from Verstappen in Q3, helped by Pérez's sacrifice, allows the Red Bull driver to snatch the lead on the grid for the last GP of the year .

However, everything is not rosy for the Dutchman, victim of a big flat on his tires in Q2, which forced him to start on soft tires on Sunday afternoon. Less suited to long stints, the red tires are however supposed to offer the pole-sitter better momentum when the lights go out. Except it failed!

Victim of untimely wheel spin, Verstappen saw Hamilton slip past him from the first corner. The Batavian tries to regain his possession at the cost of a daring and muscular maneuver at turn 6. Packed towards the outside, Hamilton chooses to cut the chicane and emerges well in the lead before temporarily taking his foot off... while retaining control of the race. Race director Michael Masi finds nothing to complain about.

Better off than pole sitter Verstappen, Hamilton cuts a corner after a muscular attack from his rival in the first lap. The referee says nothing / © DPPI

Inexorably, Hamilton widens the gap and seems to be heading towards an 8th crown quite comfortably. Verstappen, however, continues to give everything to stay in touch. He even took advantage of a great defense from Pérez against Hamilton to come back on his great rival. The Mercedes driver still manages to regain his composure... but not enough to pass fresh tires during a Virtual Safety Car triggered by the retirement of Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo).

The turning point of the race and the championship when Nicholas latifi (Williams) hits the wall at turn 14 and causes the Safety Car to intervene 5 laps from the checkerboard. Mercedes procrastinates and does not bring Hamilton in. Unsurprisingly, Verstappen does the opposite and comes out with a set of soft tires, which would give him a big advantage in the event of a restart. But will there be a restart? There is uncertainty.

The contradictory messages keep coming, the lobbying on the airwaves between the team bosses and an overwhelmed Michael Masi is intensifying. In the end, the latecomers who are between Hamilton and Verstappen are allowed to split and the race is restarted for a final lap where everything will be decided.

Verstappen has just overtaken Hamilton on the last lap of the season and is heading towards the title / © DPPI

Taking advantage of his fresher mount, the Red Bull driver throws himself inside the turn 5 hairpin and takes control, synonymous with the world title. Hamilton tried to respond on the following straights. In vain. Verstappen holds on and goes to snatch his first crown, while in the Mercedes clan, there is consternation and anger.

The German team immediately filed two complaints for non-compliance with re-start procedures. Dismissed, Mercedes indicates its intention to appeal the decision of the commissioners. Five days later, the German team finally gave up. “The championship must not be played,” says one Toto wolff deeply disappointed and visibly marked by the turn of events.

Yas Marina's pill has clearly not passed and the affair will leave its mark. Between two drivers of immense talent and very difficult to decide between, perhaps it was written that the decision would be made by a twist of fate. We would perhaps have preferred that destiny intervened in a less artificial way.

This takes nothing away from the merit of Max Verstappen, 34th world champion in history. With rare dignity and elegance in defeat, his valiant opponent Lewis Hamilton perhaps emerges even more grown up than if he had won an 8th crown.

Hamilton and Verstappen will have spoiled us until the end of the season / © DPPI