The final laps of the Abu Dhabi GP, which upset the outcome of a championship that – six laps from the conclusion of the last race – seemed written by now, continue to make Formula 1 fans argue. Regardless of the controversial decisions taken by Michael Masi during the Safety Car regime, many of the insiders have reasoned about what Mercedes could have done differently when the safety car entered the track. According to many, the most correct – albeit risky – choice would have been to stop Hamilton to mount a new set of tires, losing his position on the track but thus anticipating Red Bull’s move, which was then decisive for Verstappen’s success.
Speaking with the Swiss site Blick however, the former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone commented on what could have been another move by Mercedes, decidedly more at the limit at the regulatory level but somehow ‘definitive’: to stop the car of Valtteri Bottas. “Yes, that’s a pretty smart ideaand – Ecclestone acknowledged, answering a question from the journalist – I thought about it too. There would be some great places to stop for the Safety Car to stay out. Many people would have been angry, but the race would not have restarted and the final result could not have been changed“.
Analyzing the end of the race experienced in Yas Marina, Ecclestone also said he was convinced that the race director, Michael Masi, has made mistakes. First of all, that of not ‘exploiting’ the option of the red flag, which would have given a ‘televised’ and at the same time fair race finale between the two great antagonists of the season. “Ma lot of things went wrong in the last few laps. Race director Masi could have spared himself some trouble if he had immediately stopped the race with the red flag after Latifi’s accident. Then there would have been a superfinal between Max and Lewis in the last three laps “Ecclestone concluded.
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