Why Is The Formula 1 Title So Controversial?

Dutchman Max Verstappen was crowned Formula 1 champion for the first time. The season was full of exciting races that built his way to the title, in which the Red Bull driver competed hand-in-hand with Britain's Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, leaving the definition of the title for the last race in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. This rivalry generated friction on the track and in the media between both teams, leaving an atmosphere of tension full of controversy.

Verstappen vs. Hamilton

For Max Verstappen the third time was the charm, after two seasons culminating in third place in the ranking in the shadow of Hamilton and Bottas, the Dutchman finally won the long-awaited title for Red Bull. With him, Verstappen enters history and cuts the British winning streak that came from a four-time championship achieved between 2017 and 2020. With Hamilton, the rivalry was rude at various points in the championship, just remember what happened at the Silverstone circuits, England and Monza, Italy, where there were clashes between the two drivers who remained as leaders throughout the season. The FIA warned both that a crash in the final race would bring penalties to the culprit.

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The closeness in points motivated the heated dispute that had high moments that included harsh comments from one to the other. For example, after the crash at Silverstone that took Verstappen to hospital, the Dutchman showed his disagreement on Twitter for what he considered a minimal penalty and a disrespectful celebration of Hamilton: "Happy to be well. Very disappointed to be removed in this way "The penalty given does not help us and does not do justice to Lewis' dangerous maneuver on the track. Seeing the celebrations while I am in the hospital is disrespectful and lacking in any sporting attitude, but we will continue forward," he commented.

Red Bull vs. Mercedes

This tension did not remain on the track, not only between the drivers, it filtered down to the teams and their fans. The fight for the drivers 'championship was as tough as the battle for the constructors' championship that Mercedes finally won with authority against a Red Bull that, despite being down for the season, made the Germans nervous at key moments. After the glorious time of Red Bull with the four-time championship of Sebastian Vettel 8 years ago, the bull's company sought to return to the spotlight, although it could only get the title in the drivers' championship.

Comments full of annoyance between the two teams have been left behind, despite protests from Mercedes in the last race (which defined the title) and which were dismissed by the FIA. Now Red Bull celebrates but must seriously consider its future, even more than Mercedes, since the changes in the regulations for Formula 1 that will come into force in 2022 and the change in the engines after the end of the relationship with Honda are presented as a great challenge for the beverage company. At the moment it seems that Red Bull will not make changes between its drivers, so Verstappen and Pérez will continue to be a team, while on the side of Mercedes Hamilton will continue to lead but without Bottas who is going to Alfa Romeo, and will be replaced by another Briton: George Russell, from Williams.