Max Verstappen questions accusation of coup three years ago in the F1 final

Almost three years have passed since the 2021 Formula 1 period, but Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton continue to talk about it. While the seven-time champion recently claimed to have been harmed in the battle for the title, the three-time RBR champion disagrees. Therefore, in a press conference this Thursday (18), he took the opportunity to adopt a conciliatory tone when talking about his current relationship with Mercedes, which has him in its sights as a replacement for his rival in 2025. But what happened still shines.

The opponents were in the last grand prix of the season, the Abu Dhabi GP, with the same 369.5 points. This is in 2021. However, there was an accident in the final laps and the safety car (which in a car race appears at critical moments) entered the track, reducing the 14s advantage that Hamilton had over Verstappen. Max went to the pits and put soft tires on the car, to get closer to the Mercedes. According to the rules, the safety car had to do one more lap, which would mean that the race would end under a yellow flag, in the positions they were in. But the race direction made him leave early, which allowed more time for Max Verstappen to take the lead and win the title.

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_{Max Verstappen prepares for the Chinese Grand Prix (Photo: reproduction/QianJun/MBMedia/Getty Images Embed)}

What the Dutch say

In 2021, the fierce competition between Mercedes and RBR was evident, with clashes and collisions between the drivers, sanctions, jabs between leaders Christian Horner and Toto Wolff, and even a series of complaints, which included many disputes over the outcome of the last race of the year.

“We were ahead and behind all the time. I think it was amazing for the fans to witness that. At the end of the day, of course only one can win; one might feel differently, things like that happen in any sport. We still have to appreciate that we had a great battle for the championship” — Verstappen avoided.

Calm time

From the looks of it, the tensions seem to be in the past. In light of internal controversies at RBR at the beginning of 2024, Max even mentioned the possibility of leaving the team if consultant Helmut Marko were dismissed. This led Mercedes to express its willingness to hire him to replace Hamilton, who would be leaving Ferrari in 2025. Despite the calm atmosphere, the Dutch driver shows no interest in joining the German manufacturer.

On Sunday, April 21, F1 returns with the Chinese GP. We will then see how the duo behaves in this 5th stage of the Shanghai International Circuit.

Featured Photo: Max, in the pits (Reproduction/MarkThompson/Getty Images Embed)