The final game of F1 this season has come to an end, with Verstappen reversing Hamilton on the last lap to win the first F1 world title of his career. The course of the game was gripping, with Perez contributing a masterful teamwork performance in the game, laying the groundwork for his teammates' last-minute turnovers, while Raikkonen ended his farewell battle with a retirement, which made people sigh.
Verstappen won the title amid controversy
Verstappen won pole position in qualifying with a trailer tactic, but he started very badly in this race, having fallen behind Hamilton in Turn One, and in the ensuing race he could not find a way to overtake until the final moments of the race, when Latifi triggered a safety car, and the racer made a rare decision on the timing of the safety car's withdrawal, giving Verstappen the opportunity to attack Hamilton on the last lap.
Verstappen was clearly superior in terms of tyres, completing the overtaking at Turn 5 and blocking the opponent's counterattack at Turn 9, eventually crossing the finish line first to win the championship, which also locked the championship of the year. Mercedes was very dissatisfied with the decision of the game, protested after the game, but was rejected by the FIA, the Mercedes has officially appealed, but the result should be difficult to change, Verstappen completed his coronation ceremony in the controversy.
Hamilton lost his title to earn respect
Despite Verstappen's eventual victory, many neutral fans fell to Hamilton's side after the race, and in the eyes of most, Hamilton deserved the victory and the championship. Indeed, the "Seven Champions" played almost impeccable in this race, and in the starting stage, he surpassed Verstappen, who started with a soft tire, with a neutral tire, and always took the initiative into his own hands.
In the final stages of the race, Giovinac triggered a virtual safety car and Latifi triggered a safety car, but Mercedes did not let Hamilton enter the station, which seemed debatable after the game, but in the case of the time, Mercedes could not risk losing their position to let Hamilton enter the station, and their approach was not too problematic. But the decision of the tournament officer to restart the final lap of the race caused Hamilton to lose his victory. What is remarkable is that Hamilton still maintains a good demeanor, and he even took the initiative to congratulate Verstappen.
Perez dedicates master teamwork
Behind Verstappen's victory, Perez's outstanding performance cannot be ignored. Whether the Mexican driver is a qualified wingman or not has been debated this season, but his flawless performance in the closing round proves that every penny That Red Bull paid for him was worth it. In qualifying, Perez sacrificed his speed lap to tow for his teammates, helping Verstappen gain pole position.
In the main race, when Verstappen lost the top position in the starting stage, Red Bull changed the pre-race plan and let Perez block Hamilton, Perez used a set of soft tires that ran more than 20 laps, and Shengsheng blocked Hamilton behind him for a lap and a half, which helped his teammates recover the 5-second gap, and Verstappen praised Perez as a "legend" on the radio. Although Perez withdrew from the race at the last minute due to a racing failure, his wonderful performance in this race is destined to become a topic of discussion among fans for a long time.
The three drivers said goodbye by withdrawing
Finnish Iceman Raikkonen had his last game in F1, but the course of the game was a disaster for him. In qualifying, Raikkonen stopped Q1, and when it came to the main race, he also suffered a brake failure after fighting at the end of the team, the car rushed out of the track and hit the parapet, and the Finnish veteran ended his 20-year F1 journey with a retirement, saying goodbye to the fans in a regrettable way.
Interestingly, the drivers who ushered in the "farewell battle" generally had bad luck in this race, Russell, who was about to bid farewell to Williams, withdrew due to transmission problems, and Geovinac, who was about to leave Alfa Romeo to temporarily leave F1, because of the power of the car, the farewell methods of these three drivers were full of regrets.
Ferrari is back in the top three of the year
Ferrari have been mired in the state of the past few seasons until this season finally showed signs of stopping. In the closing stage, Sainz finished third on the podium and Leclerc also entered the points zone, and in the end they did not give the McLaren team behind them a chance to overtake, locking in the third place of the year. Such results certainly cannot be called perfect, but combined with Ferrari's movements in recent seasons, we have reason to expect more from their performance next season. (Text/Li Tianyou)