From a third person’s view, the final lap of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix looked pretty much straightforward; Max Verstappen eased past Lewis Hamilton around turn 5 and continued to extend his lead, as he went on to see the chequered flag with a comfortable gap to the seven-time world champion.

Sounds very simple, doesn’t it? Well, here’s the truth. Just one extra lap and the result could’ve tilted in favor of Hamilton. During an interview with The Guardian, the Dutchman admitted that he would’ve lost the championship to Hamilton if he had one additional lap to complete.

Why you might ask? Turns out, Verstappen had suffered a serious muscle spasm on his foot heading into the first corner of the final lap. And from there on, he apparently couldn’t control his foot anymore and struggled to push the throttle to its absolute limit.

“It was all working well until I crossed the line and started to feel cramp in my leg. It’s one of the most painful things that can happen because you’re going full throttle for a long time,” he said. “You feel the muscle clenching and becoming like a tennis ball.”

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Max Verstappen admits the painful Abu Dhabi GP truth

Verstappen opened up about the chances of winning the 2021 title had he had an extra lap to complete in Abu Dhabi following the safety car period.

“I was just keeping it full throttle and I could feel my leg hurting more and more. Luckily, turn five arrived and I went for the move. I had like three seconds off throttle,” he added. “You then have two very long straights and, on the second one where Lewis came back at me, I could feel my foot vibrating. I couldn’t control it because the muscle was having a spasm.”

“It was completely done. One more lap and I couldn’t have finished the race like that. The stress levels were so high in the final lap that probably your body reacts to that. But you cannot give up.”

Nevertheless, Verstappen held his nerves until the chequered flag to clinch his first-ever world championship title. And what a finish that was to the season! Nail-biting from the very start of the season in Bahrain to the very final lap in Abu Dhabi – Definitely one of those ‘rare’ F1 seasons.

But, could Hamilton and Verstappen put on another show in 2022? Will the pair be able to replicate the 2021 title fight this time around?

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