Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen were part of one of the greatest title battles in 2021. They went toe to toe for the Championship for the very get-go and it was decided in Verstappen’s favour, only on the final lap of the season finale in Abu Dhabi.
It was a demanding season for all parties involved. Off the track, there were a lot of controversies and repeated verbal battles between the Red Bull and Mercedes personnel. On several occasions, the latter’s team boss Toto Wolff was furious with his rival counterpart Christian Horner.
There are some moments involving Wolff which became very iconic as a result. His outbursts in Jeddah and Abu Dhabi in particular are still brought up today and the visuals of him smashing his headphones are used in memes, even a year on. The Austrian, however, is not proud of having lost his head like that.
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Toto Wolff lost control of himself due to Max Verstappen
Verstappen was always a promising talent in the sport, but last year, he truly proved that he belonged with the greats. Mercedes expected Red Bull to fight but wasn’t expecting the Dutchman to come out with all guns blazing as he did.
The emotions in both camps were high, and Wolff lost control several times. The 50-year-old admitted that he did not lose his cool like this since his teenage years. He added that it was all down to the hard-fought challenge brought on by Verstappen and Red Bull.
Max Verstappen says Toto Wolff has congratulated him on a deserves first F1 World Championship.https://t.co/rIgyLSKpqa #F1 pic.twitter.com/nnPOudK5a4
— PlanetF1 (@Planet_F1) December 13, 2021
“It was the first time I had lost control since I was an adolescent,” he said to Sky Sports. “In my sense of fairness, that was totally against my values.”
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Mercedes aims to return to the Championship battle in 2023
The 2022 season was a year of learning for the Silver Arrows. Their dominance in the Constructors’ Championship finally came to an end after eight long years, as they spent the majority of the year behind Red Bull and Ferrari.
Towards the end of the season, they recovered some form and even won a race. The W13s were dominant in Sao Paolo as George Russell finished ahead of Hamilton to get their 1-2 finish and win of the season.
The fact that they showed promise in the last few races is seen as a sign of progress within the Brackley-based outfit. They will be hoping to return to the front of the grid and fight for the World Title once again in 2023.
