Lewis Hamilton radio message to his race engineer emerges from the end of Sunday's contentious final lap; seven-time champion was gracious towards Max Verstappen after the race and congratulated the newly-crowned champion
Tuesday 14 December 2021 10:24, UK
Lewis Hamilton said "this has been manipulated" in a radio message to his Mercedes team after the controversial ending to the Abu Dhabi GP.
In a message aired via car on-board channels, Hamilton suggested to race engineer Peter Bonnington with four corners of the race to go: "This has been manipulated, man."
Hamilton lost the title after being overtaken on the race's final lap by Max Verstappen after a Safety Car triggered a sequence of events that incensed Mercedes.
Mercedes were angered by Race Control's handling of the restart procedure after only the five lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen were able to overtake and the race restarted at the end of that same lap.
Stewards heard their case but dismissed it, saying FIA race director Michael Masi had acted within the regulations. But Mercedes have lodged an intention to appeal the decision and have until Thursday evening to formalise any challenge.
Mercedes continue to assess their options.
The only post-race interview Hamilton concluded was his immediate one in parc ferme, in which he sportingly congratulated Verstappen on his title victory.
"Firstly, congratulations to Max and to his team," Hamilton told Sky F1's Jenson Button.
"I think we did an amazing job this year. My team, everyone back at the factory, have worked so hard this whole year, it's been the most difficult of seasons. I'm so proud of them and I'm so grateful to be a part of the journey with them.
"This last part of the season we gave it absolutely everything and never gave up."
Put to him by Button that he appeared confident to come back and fight for an eighth title again next year, Hamilton replied: "Of course I've been feeling good, great, in the car these past couple of months, particularly at the end.
"If I'm honest, we're still in the pandemic and I just really wish everyone to stay safe and have a good Christmas with all their families. Yeah, we'll see about next year."
Although that latter comment about 2022 sparked some social media intrigue, Hamilton signed a new two-year Mercedes deal earlier this season.
Martin Brundle: "He never gave up and then he had to change his style a little bit to match the aggression on Max and I think he did that very well. Either of them winning the world championship would have been fully deserving of it.
"I think he kept it calm even under some very extreme circumstances, such as Monza."
Jenson Button: "I think he should be very proud of what he's done this year. Lewis this year, we've all said, it's a very different Lewis than previous years. He was very relaxed, very confident in his ability. If he was insecure in the past, that's gone. It feels like he's found himself this year."
Karun Chandhok: "Neither driver deserved to lose that World Championship. Lewis and Mercedes started the season on the back foot, with a car that looked very tricky to drive but they worked together as a team, dug themselves out of a hole and came to the final part of the season with the faster package.
"Lewis' victories in Bahrain and Brazil this year were amongst his best of all time."
