Max Verstappen has become Formula 1 World Champion after the last race of the 2021 season. To be specific, it happened after the last lap of the last race. Sure, the 1,296 laps that led to this one mattered each in their own way, but the action was nerve-wracking, as we expected.
With the result achieved on Sunday, Verstappen brought the first Formula 1 crown for Honda since 1991. That is a nice send-off for the Japanese marque that previously decided to quit the sport after the conclusion of this season. Mind you, Honda had 11 wins this season, and it has not had as many since 1988, when it had fifteen wins out of 16 races. This season's battle was left for the last race, and Max Verstappen had left from pole position, despite a major mistake on Q2 on Saturday, while he also led the championship with one win ahead of Lewis Hamilton, despite collecting the same number of points. The Dutchman declared that he could not have asked for “a more insane last race of the year.” Verstappen describes it as “a bit of a rollercoaster,” which came from “not really having a chance of winning until the last lap.” At that point, as Max explains, “everything came together, and he had to go for it.” Max went on to praise Lewis Hamilton for being an amazing driver and described their fight during this season as “amazing.” The 24-year-old Dutch driver did not forget to thank his team, but also his teammate, Sergio “Checo” Perez, who “drove his heart out for the team.” Verstappen credited his win of the Championship due to Perez' performance during the race. The Mexican put on an epic show in lap 20, trying to slow Hamilton down and allow Max to come closer to the Brit. Unfortunately, Sergio Perez encountered issues with his car on the last lap and retired from the race, but two other drivers who used Honda engines finished the race with positive results. On that same last lap, after the Safety Car withdrew, Max overtook Lewis. With worn-out tires, the Brit didn't stand a chance.
Pierre Gasly, from Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda started the race in 12th place and finished fifth, while his colleague, Yuki Tsunoda of Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda started the race in eighth place and finished in a career-best, fourth place.
Keyword: Max Verstappen Wins Last F1 Race of the Season, Becomes World Champion