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HOCKENHEIM, GERMANY – JULY 31: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Max Verstappen of The Netherlands both of Red Bull Racing during the Formula One Grand Prix of Germany at Hockenheimring on July 31, 2016 in Hockenheim, Germany. (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images)

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HOCKENHEIM, GERMANY – JULY 31: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Max Verstappen of The Netherlands both of Red Bull Racing during the Formula One Grand Prix of Germany at Hockenheimring on July 31, 2016 in Hockenheim, Germany. (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images)
Daniel Ricciardo recently opened up on the controversial 2021 F1 title. The former Red Bull man talked in support of his former colleague Max Verstappen. During the 2021 title decider, Max Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton on the very last lap to clinch his first Championship title.
Ricciardo has expressed that Max Verstappen’s F1 title is all fair and good. Verstappen won his maiden F1 title, stopping Lewis from becoming the first driver to win eight championships.

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MONTMELO, SPAIN – MARCH 12: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Red Bull Racing walk during Formula One winter testing at Circuit de Catalunya on March 12, 2017 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
Talking about the last lap incident, the Honey Badger conveyed, “Even if the last lap was boring last year, there would be a winner and a loser no matter how the race ended. But they both really deserved the title. They had great races and it was obvious that someone was going to lose.”
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The fans got divided after seeing how the 2021 championship was decided. In light of this, Daniel further stated on this, “Of course there are those on Lewis’s side, but there shouldn’t be a ‘Max didn’t deserve it’ side because he certainly did.” (quotes translated by Google Translator)
Read More: No One is As Happy as Daniel Ricciardo Over F1’s US GP Announcement
Why the controversy?
The 2021 F1 Championship attracted a fair bit of controversy. The Abu Dhabi GP started with Lewis overtaking Max at the first corner to lead the race for the most part. The seven-times world champion was just a few laps away from getting his hands into the title. However, at Lap 52, of the 58 lap race, Nicholas Latifi crashed against the barrier. Subsequent to this, the safety car was brought out.
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Formula One F1 – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – December 12, 2021 Red Bull’s Max Verstappen celebrates winning the race and the world championship REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah
Just before the safety car was taken in, race director Michael Masi instructed the lapped cars to lap themselves. This brought Max right behind Hamilton. The Dutchman, with his new soft tires, didn’t have to do much to overtake the Briton who was on his old hard tires.
This decision created a massive controversy as Mercedes immediately presented pleas to the FIA. Furthermore, amid this controversy, FIA has recently dismissed race director Michael Masi from his post after the commission meeting.
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With the new rules and regulations set in place, which team do you think will have the upper hand during the 2021 season? Let us know in the comments below.
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