© Jiri Krenek for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
Toto Wolff says the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix still “stings”, because “the best man that day didn’t win”, and the race win and the championship were “stolen”.
The story of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is now well known. In that fateful race, race director Michael Masi denied Lewis Hamilton an almost certain race and title win, when he decided to break the rules which govern the use of the Safety Car.
It was later admitted by the FIA that the decisions made on that day were the result of a “human error”, but nothing was done to remedy that.
Now, in an appearance on BBC Radio’s Desert Island Discs, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said what happened in Abu Dhabi still “stings”.
“Both drivers started with equal points into this race,” the Austrian said.
“Best man and best machine wins, and the best man that day didn’t win. And it’s still something that stings.
“Not of losing it, because I would have been able, all of us would have been able to lose that race fair and square and admit that. But it was stolen and that made it difficult.
“The FIA was with its next regime, a new president was voted in literally that month, and was able to admit that a mistake was made and it was ‘human error’, that’s how they called it.
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“But obviously that was not bringing us the trophy back and was not making Lewis the only eight-time world champion.
“But you just need to overcome it. And I think Lewis and I are very similar in that respect, we are able to compartmentalise.
“But it is what it is. Much worse things happen in the world than being stolen of a Formula 1 world championship.”
However, Toto revealed one positive thing happened as a result of the injustice – Mercedes gained more fans.
“The interesting phenomenon is that we as a team and Lewis as a driver, we didn’t have a lot of credit and sympathy because we won so many times.
“And we became the underdog in that moment. People cheered for us.
“And that is still a positive for us today,” Wolff concluded.
