© Wolfgang Wilhelm for Daimler AG
Former F1 team manager Peter Windsor says “that race of Lewis’ at Abu Dhabi was one of the best races he ever drove”, and adds the race director made an “insanely bad decision at the wrong time”.
During Peter Windsor’s recent YouTube stream, the former F1 team manager was asked how evenly matched the Red Bull and Mercedes cars were in 2021.
“They were very, very closely matched,” Windsor answered.
“The Mercedes was usually a bit quicker in a straight line, but it was close. It was very close. I think we saw Mercedes definitely with a very competitive car in the last few races.
“I still say that race of Lewis’s at Abu Dhabi was one of the best races he ever drove and, considering the state of the Championship, it was a really impressive performance from Mercedes as well, I think, to do as well as they did.”
Windsor then turned his attention the decisions made by race director Michael Masi at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which went against the rules, and allowed Max Verstappen to overtake Lewis in the final lap of the race, essentially robbing the Briton of an almost guaranteed eighth title win.
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He explained how that race should have been red flagged, just as the Dutch Grand Prix was last Sunday.
“I was just thinking actually, to go on about it again, when the whole red flag thing came out at Zandvoort, and they all stopped and then they told everybody what tyres to be on, why didn’t they do that at Abu Dhabi?
“If they’re going to stop the race, why didn’t they do that? Everybody must be on a new set of soft tyres, one-lap sprint to the finish – that would’ve been OK.
“But to allow pit stops and then have the race start when it shouldn’t have? It still sticks in the gullet, that one.
“Nothing to do with Max deserving it or not, I just think it was an insanely bad decision at the wrong time,” Windsor concluded.
