Max Verstappen Wins F1 World Title in Dramatic Finish at Abu Dhabi GP

At just 24 years old, Max Verstappen can add the title of World Champion to his name.

The Red Bull driver managed to hold off title rival Lewis Hamilton during the season-finale Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, in which Verstappen finished first and the Mercedes star finished second after a controversial final lap.

This very track historically has been a Mercedes power ground, as the team snagged every pole and win from 2014 through '19 until Verstappen shocked the Formula One world by taking the pole and victory last season. Now, he’s repeating history.

Verstappen started in pole position, but Hamilton overtook him on the first lap. Hamilton held the lead for most of the race—until Red Bull's Sergio Pérez snagged the lead as the Mercedes driver pitted for fresh tires. It became clear Red Bull's goal was to have Pérez utilize defensive driving against Hamilton to help lessen Verstappen's near-eight second deficit.

As his teammate got closer, Pérez pitted and Hamilton regained the lead. The Mercedes driver continued to put space between himself and his title rival and looked on track to win his record-breaking eighth world title.

That is, until a late safety car came out for a Nicholas Latifi crash. Red Bull brought in Verstappen for fresh tires but Hamilton had to stay out or else he would have sacrificed the lead.

Five lapped cars sat between Hamilton and Verstappen as the racers drove around the track behind the safety car for the final laps. But in a surprising and controversial move, those five cars were allowed to overtake the safety car.

FIA Formula One race director Michael Masi told Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, "Toto, it's called a motor race, OK? We went car racing."

The race restarted with Verstappen just behind Hamilton, and the 24-year-old retook the lead on the final lap to win the race and the title.

Throughout the season, the two exchanged poles and wins, the tension gradually building as the 22-race season started dwindling. Verstappen held an eight-point lead over Hamilton heading into the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix last weekend. However, a critical mistake caused Verstappen to crash into the wall, leaving Hamilton to snag the pole.

The race in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah was tainted with three standing starts, a pair of restarts, multiple safety cars and a chaotic back-and-forth between the duo. At one point, Red Bull negotiated a penalty for Verstappen mid-race. It all came to a head when the 24-year-old was told to let Hamilton pass with 12 laps to go, but the two collided. Hamilton eventually grabbed the win, evening the playing field heading into Abu Dhabi.

Leading into the final weekend, some drivers voiced in interviews with Formula One their opinions of who should win, but Williams's George Russell added a critical point: “Hopefully it’s a clean and fair race and the best man wins.”

Throughout practice and qualifying, it seemed that the title contenders kept it clean. Verstappen snagged the pole position at the Yas Marina Circuit with some help from his teammate’s tow, although the 24-year-old tried to downplay any potential advantage that could have caused. 

Though Hamilton erased that pole advantage early, Verstappen came back to take the victory in dramatic fashion. It capped off a sensational 2021 season for the Red Bull driver that featured 10 wins and his first Formula One World Championship.