'Oh my God': Daniel Ricciardo lifts the lid on nasty F1 drama

Daniel Ricciardo admits he's still in shock about the dramatic and controversial conclusion to the 2021 Formula One season, that saw Max Verstappen snatch the world title off Lewis Hamilton on the last lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen won the championship for Red Bull after a late race safety car left him behind reigning champion and title rival Lewis Hamilton, with one lap left and boasting a significantly fresher set of tyres.

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FIA race director Michael Masi has faced a mountain of scrutiny for his role in the last-lap drama, following the unconventional move to only let the five lapped cars separating Verstappen and Hamilton pass the safety car before it was called in.

Masi's decision opened the door for Verstappen to overtake Hamilton on the final lap, to claim the race win and his maiden F1 championship.

McLaren driver Ricciardo had a front row seat as the drama unfolded in front of him, and admitted at the time that he couldn't believe what was happening.

“I’m glad I’m not part of that, whatever just happened,” Ricciardo said after the Abu Dhabi GP.

“Seemed, uh, pretty f***ed up.”

Two months on from the contentious incident, the Aussie admits he's still hurting for seven-time world champion Hamilton, who's future in the sport has been under a cloud ever since.

“It was more a little bit of shock,” Ricciardo said about the last-lap drama.

“Because I was like, ‘Wait, how am I watching the last lap unfold in front of my eyes’.

"I knew Lewis had a relatively comfortable lead, so I kind of knew what the safety car meant, that he was going to lose that lead, then I’m pretty sure I saw Max pit, so now Max has fresh tyres and I was like, ‘Oh my God, if they restart this, Lewis is probably going to lose the title on the last lap’.”

Masi's contentious call meant that's exactly how it panned out, with the Australian's future as race director in the balance following a crunch meeting of the sport’s major players earlier this week.

Ricciardo admitted the incident reminded him of the moment Felipe Massa was denied the 2008 F1 championship on the final lap, when a late pass from Hamilton saw the Brit snatch the championship by one point.

“I remember watching it in 2008,” Ricciardo added.

“I was like ‘I can’t believe this is happening again’ so for whatever reason I kind of put myself in Lewis’ head not Max’s head and I was just like, ‘Man I would hate to be Lewis right now, because that’s real heartbreak’.

“It seemed pretty surreal, and I was gobsmacked, when I watched it in 2008 I was like, ‘This will never happen again, a championship decided on the last lap, it will never ever happen again’ and I was behind the wheel watching it happen again so I was pretty shocked.”

Questions remain over Michael Masi's F1 role

Two months after the contentious incident – in a race Hamilton said was “manipulated” following Masi’s handling of the late safety car period – the Australian’s fate is still up in the air, while the FIA’s investigation is ongoing.

Hamilton, described by Wolff as “disillusioned” after missing out on his eighth world title, looks set to make his first public appearance since the debacle in the desert on Friday when Mercedes launches its new car at Silverstone.

FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem chaired this week's four-hour summit and is expected to address the continued fallout from Abu Dhabi later this week – with a restructure of race control expected.

In a statement, the FIA said: “The FIA president led detailed discussions of the 2021 Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“Feedback from the Commission on matters raised will be incorporated into the President’s analysis and he will publicly present news of structural changes and action plan in the coming days.”

One school of thought is that Masi could be forced to take up a lesser role, with Portuguese Eduardo Freitas moving across from the World Endurance Championship to replace him.

However, the under-fire Masi has found the support of a number of drivers in recent days, with four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel and British driver Lando Norris among those to speak up on his behalf.

with agencies

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