Abu Dhabi 2021: a former FIA steward claims Max Verstappen was "gifted" championship title

The wounds of the 2021 Formula 1 season finale continue to reopen as a former FIA steward has reignited one of motorsport's most polarizing debates. Nearly five years after that fateful Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Danny Sullivan—who served as an FIA steward during two race weekends in the 2021 season—has delivered a scathing assessment of race director Michael Masi's handling of the championship-deciding race, claiming that Verstappen was essentially "gifted" the world title through a series of controversial decisions.

The anatomy of controversy

The 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix remains etched in F1 folklore as the moment when championship glory was decided not by driver supremacy, but by regulatory interpretation. Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton entered the final race of the season level on points—a stunning narrative setup that promised a thrilling climax to an intense campaign.

However, a late safety car deployment transformed the narrative entirely. The critical juncture came when Masi made the consequential decision to permit only selected lapped cars to overtake the safety car, rather than following the established procedure of allowing all lapped cars to regain their positions. This selective application of the rules proved decisive: Verstappen, who had pitted for fresh soft compound tyres, suddenly found himself positioned directly behind Hamilton—who remained on degraded hard tyres that had already completed 44 laps of racing.

The mathematical reality was brutal. Hamilton, with worn rubber offering minimal grip, had virtually no chance of defending against Verstappen's fresher tyres on the final lap. As Sullivan himself articulated: "There was not a chance in hell that he wasn't going to pass him at that stage".

Sullivan's assessment: a gift, not a victory

Sullivan's candid analysis cuts through years of defensive rhetoric. The former CART IndyCar champion argued that Masi's decision to allow only five lapped cars to overtake—rather than all of them as regulations dictated—fundamentally compromised the race's integrity. According to Sullivan, if Masi had followed protocol by waving through all lapped cars, the race likely would have concluded under yellow flags, eliminating the possibility of a final-lap shootout.

"He let the five by, and then he put Max right behind Lewis. Max had stopped for tyres - Lewis had not - he's on qualifying tyres, he's on reds. Lewis' tyres had 44 laps on them," Sullivan explained to the Epartrade YouTube channel. "He [Masi] basically gifted him the world championship on that decision".

Despite his criticism, Sullivan acknowledged the enormous pressures facing Masi during that season. The race director was navigating his 23rd consecutive race weekend—23 races into an already taxing campaign—while facing constant pressure from teams and media alike. Sullivan reflected that "these guys are travelling non-stop, they're being beat up all the time by teams, everybody, there's all kinds of controversy".

The aftermath and regulatory response

Following the race, Mercedes immediately protested the result on multiple grounds, challenging Masi's interpretation of the safety car regulations. The stewards ultimately dismissed the protest, citing Article 48.13 and 15.3, which grants the race director "overriding authority" to amend safety car procedures as deemed necessary.

The FIA subsequently acknowledged "human error" in a formal report released three months after the race, ultimately removing Masi from his position. The governing body committed to reducing the race director's responsibilities in future seasons to prevent similar controversies.

Hamilton's perspective: at peace, yet unresolved

Lewis Hamilton, who lost what would have been a record-equalling eighth world championship title, has recently spoken about the incident with surprising composure. In an interview with GQ Magazine, Hamilton acknowledged feeling "robbed" of the title while stating he is now "at peace" with the controversial outcome.

"Was I robbed? Obviously," Hamilton stated. Yet despite radioing immediately after the race that the result had been "manipulated," Hamilton extended a handshake to Verstappen in the immediate aftermath—a gesture that encapsulated the sporting grace demanded of elite competitors even in moments of profound disappointment.

The broader questions

Sullivan's recent comments have resurfaced a fundamental question about F1's governance: whether the sport's rulebook should grant a single individual the unilateral authority to reshape the conclusion of a championship-deciding race. While Sullivan emphasized that stewards operate as a panel and that he witnessed no evidence of bias during his 14 years of service, the 2021 Abu Dhabi incident exposed potential vulnerabilities in the current regulatory framework.

The controversy has become emblematic of a larger discussion within F1 about consistency, fairness, and the balance between race director discretion and adherence to published sporting regulations. As the sport continues to evolve, the lessons from Abu Dhabi 2021 remain instructive—not as a indictment of Masi personally, but as a catalyst for systemic improvement in how the sport's most critical moments are administered.

What remains undisputed is that Verstappen's maiden world championship, while technically legitimate within the regulatory framework as it existed, will forever carry the asterisk of that controversial final lap restart—a legacy that even victories in subsequent seasons have not entirely erased from the sport's collective memory.