The FIA has published its inquiry into the controversial finale to the 2021 Formula One season in Abu Dhabi, concluding that the decisions made as race director by Michael Masi which denied Lewis Hamilton the championship were made in “good faith” but that “human error” played a part. It also confirmed the result of the race, which Max Verstappen won to claim the title, stands and that the governing body considers the matter closed.
The report is unlikely to satisfy the many people who are deeply unhappy about how the race was handled. It acknowledged that discussions with teams, F1 and drivers had concluded that they had a preference to try to avoid ending races behind the safety car and that in trying to do so in Abu Dhabi “Masi was acting in good faith and to the best of his knowledge given the difficult circumstances”. This was the case, furthermore, “particularly acknowledging the significant time constraints for decisions to be made and the immense pressure being applied by the teams”. However, Masi has since been removed from his post.
In reference to Masi’s decision to allow only a certain number of cars to unlap themselves rather than all of them, the wording could well be interpreted as disingenuous. The report stated: “The process of identifying lapped cars has up until now been a manual one and human error led to the fact that not all cars were allowed to un-lap themselves.”
The rule has since been changed noting that “all” not “any” cars must be permitted to unlap themselves. They have also now stated the instructions on cars unlapping will be automated. But describing it as “human error” suggests the decision was accidental or unconscious, which appeared not to be the case in Abu Dhabi when Masi made a conscious decision from race control.
The other most contentious decision, that Masi allowed the safety car to pit immediately after the lapped cars had unlapped themselves rather than staying out for an extra lap as is stated in the regulations, was acknowledged. The report stated, though, that the rule in questions, Article 48.12 and Article 48.13, could be open to “different interpretation” and this contributed to the decision that was made. Yet if that was the case, it raises the question of why these rules have not subsequently been changed in order to remove any confusion or “interpretation” in future.
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The statement concluded with what the FIA will hope is a sense of finality but which is unlikely to quell the sense of injustice still felt by many fans. “The results of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the FIA Formula One World Championship are valid, final and cannot now be changed,” it read.
