Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: Unbelievable! Verstappen after a shocking conclusion to the champion! – ŠPORT.sk

Hamilton’s Mercedes team won the eighth consecutive triumph in the Constructors’ Cup. He matched McLaren in historical order. Only Williams (9) and Ferrari (16) have more triumphs.

Verstappen and Hamilton had 369.5 points before the race. Only for the second time in history did the first and second runners of the standings go to the final event of the season with a balanced number of points. The first such case occurred in 1974, when Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi finally triumphed over the Swiss Clay Regazzoni.

Verstappen started very badly from his 10th pole position of the season. Hamilton got in front of him before the first turn, but the Dutchman kept close. In the first round, Verstappen attacked Hamilton in a left turn, in which he pushed Brita off the track after contact, but he kept the first place. Pérez also started, who left no room for Norris and moved to 3rd place.

Hamilton gradually increased the lead, his opponent, who started on a soft compound, also lagged behind due to problems with the rear tires. He overtook them in the 14th round, returning for the fourth Norris. They reacted immediately in Mercedes, and Hamilton also had a quick stop, returning to the track behind the first Pérez thanks to a significant lead. He got through it only in the 21st round after completing several close battles in the corners with the Mexican.

Verstappen, who had so far lost 8 seconds, was able to catch up with Hamilton, who was significantly behind in his fights with Pérez. In the 27th lap, Räikkönen went to the pebbles, came into the pits, but did not return to the track. For the 2007 world champions, it was an unwanted farewell to his career. George Russell, who was betrayed by the transmission, also resigned in the same round. Farewell to F1 and the Alfa Romeo team did not go well to Antonio Giovinazzi, who resigned in the 36th round due to a technical problem.

Verstappen’s second safety car brought a second visit to the pits. After her, the loss to Hamilton increased, but the Dutchman gradually cut from him. However, his loss turned out to be too great. The end of the race was dramatized by Latifi, who crashed into a barrier in the 53rd round. A safety vehicle came on the track, and Verstappen and Pérez immediately took over the tires.

For Pérez, the race ended shortly afterwards when he headed to the pits and put down the monopost. The safety car left the track in lap 59. Verstappen had one lap left to overtake Hamilton, and he succeeded. In the end, he didn’t have the premiere title taken away.