Verstappen had made it clear in Brazil that he had his reasons, which the team knew, for taking a place away from Perez, even though to outsiders it looked selfish and mean-spirited.
Perez said on the team radio that “it shows what he’s really like”, a comment he was later wishing he could retract. Verstappen refused to confirm his actions were payback for the possibility Perez had deliberately spun during qualifying for the Monaco GP, meaning he deprived Verstappen from beating him to pole position, which subsequently led to a Perez victory.
All that was apparently forgotten as Verstappen took pole position in Abu Dhabi, with Perez starting alongside him, while Leclerc qualified third. Verstappen vowed to help his teammate stay in second place by giving him a tow where DRS was available, to stay clear of Leclerc, who would prefer to be fighting for the championship, but was happy to settle for second place, given Verstappen’s domination this season.
Unfortunately, Plan A, which was a 1-2 finish in the race and the championship, began to go out the window as Leclerc and his teammate Carlos Sainz were threatening to overtake Perez.
So Red Bull adopted Plan B, which was to put Perez on a two-stop strategy and hope he would overtake Leclerc in the closing stages. But it didn’t work as Leclerc held on for second place by 1.3 seconds, and he finished second in the driver’s championship.
As it transpires, those extra 3 points nullified the points Perez lost in Brazil. Knowing his actions hadn’t cost his teammate second place in the championship, enabled Max to be more buoyant about his latest win, while setting a new record of 15 victories in one season.
“Yeah, it was a good race,” Verstappen told interviewer Jenson Button.
“It was all about tyre management – I think we looked after the mediums quite well and then hard tyres, I was literally managing from lap 1 to the end. Incredible to win here again and 15th win of the season is unbelievable.
“It’s been a great team effort, especially after our tough start to the year. To turn it around like that I wouldn’t have ever imagined, I think nobody in the team, but it’s been really enjoyable to be part of the team,” he added.
For Leclerc, second place here and in the championship is some consolation for the fact that he led the championship for the first five races, but Verstappen’s run of victories compared to DNF’s and some mediocre results for Leclerc soon exposed the superiority that the Red Bull, in the hands of Verstappen at least, had over Ferrari.
Leclerc told Button he was “110 per cent from the first lap to the last. Honestly, we had the perfect race for us, there was not much more today”.
“I knew that the only possibility for us to beat Checo today was with a different strategy and playing with the tyre management, which we did really well today. And we managed to make the one-stop work. So really, really happy.”
For Perez, it is obviously disappointing he couldn’t give Red Bull their first 1-2 finish in the driver’s championship, but he was satisfied he gave it his best shot.
“I’m pleased because I gave it all, you know,” he told Button.
“Obviously we look back, there were things we could have done better, like that middle stint, you know, we were still thinking that we were on a one-stop at that point. So, I think that really caught us out a little bit and that really meant we lost a few seconds there where we were behind Max.”
It has been Perez’s best season, with race victories in Monaco and Singapore, both street circuits, as well as 11 podiums., including one in his home race in Mexico.
“Certainly, there were some great, great days that we had during the season. We had great moments, great battling. I think I did struggle a bit with the tyres for this year, in terms of managing the tyres in the race. So, hopefully that can be something we improve for next year and generally just be a bit stronger.”
While the world champion was cruising to victory and his teammate was battling to catch up with Leclerc, there was considerable fan interest in the final F1 drive of 35-year-old Sebastian Vettel in the Aston Martin, who is retiring after 16 seasons. The four-time world champion bows out with 53 race victories, placing him 4th on the all-time list, and remains at the age of 23 years and 134 days, F1′s youngest world champion. He has mellowed over the years but is still remembered for his fiery clashes on track with Red Bull teammate Mark Webber between 2010 and 2012. Off-track, he has become a crusader for climate change solutions and a critic of Putin’s war on Ukraine.
On the Thursday night before his final race, all the drivers attended a dinner in Vettel’s honour, with Lewis Hamilton picking up the tab. Mick Schumacher has been mentored by Vettel, who in turn had been mentored by Mick’s father, Michael. Abu Dhabi could be Mick’s last F1 race, given he has been replaced at Haas for 2023 by fellow German Nico Hulkenberg. Dubbed ‘Super-Sub’, Hulkenberg had replaced an unwell Perez at Racing Point (now Aston Martin) for two races in 2020 due to Covid, and also for Lance Stroll, and twice this season for Vettel when he had Covid. Mick had a Vettel helmet on for the race, as did Fernando Alonso. The latter says their careers will always be linked, given they fought down to the last race for the 2010 and 2012 titles that went Vettel’s way, when Alonso was with Ferrari.
Vettel finished 10th in the race, ruing the fact that the team had put him on a one-stop strategy, something he felt was the wrong way to go. Having scored literally his last point in F1, Vettel was asked by Button, who also raced against Vettel for much of his career, how he felt.
“I feel a bit empty,” Vettel said. “It’s been a big weekend. The last two years have been disappointing but there are more important things in life.
“It’s a huge privilege to be in the position I’m in. I hope I can pass this on to the other drivers, the responsibility. There are things far bigger and more important than racing in circles. It’s been very special to have that kind of farewell. I had a great time and was able to enjoy success and win championships. From the sporting point of view it’s been huge but also I have been able to grow and mature in many ways, reflect about a lot of things.”
Also having possibly his last race was Vettel’s former Red Bull teammate, Daniel Ricciardo. He is being replaced at McLaren for 2023 by fellow Aussie Oscar Piastri, who is yet to drive a F1 car in anger. Ricciardo ran out of options for a drive next year largely because his form has dropped away dramatically, and he has been completely overshadowed by Lando Norris at McLaren. Red Bull boss Christian Horner has confirmed that Ricciardo will be Red Bull’s reserve driver in 2023, a role Kiwi driver Liam Lawson could easily have fulfilled, given his impressive showing in Max’s car in FP1.
Somewhat ironically, Ricciardo finished ahead of Vettel in their last race, which has proved costly for Aston Martin. They were battling with Alfa Romeo for 6th place in the Constructors’ championship, and the difference in finishing 7th was worth US$12 million. Both teams finished on 55 points but on countback Alfa Romeo retain 6th place.
Alonso finished his third stint as a Renault driver, this latest one with the renamed Alpine team, retiring for the 7th time from a grand prix this season, saying: “It’s a little bit sad to finish like that. Even though it’s a goodbye to this team after the weekend, I will always think of Alpine with good memories. I spent nine years of my life with this team and won two championships in the past with Renault, so I wish them well for the future.”
Alonso switches from the blue at Alpine to the green at Aston Martin next year, so it’s goodbye and hello from him.
Hamilton also retired from the race, and for the first time in 16 seasons, he has no race victory.
“Ultimately, I think we started with a car that we didn’t want, and we finished with a car that we didn’t want, but we were basically stuck with it,” Hamilton lamented.
“I hope that the struggles this year really provide us with the tools and the strength to fight for many more championships moving forward.”
Verstappen says “High”, Hamilton says “Low” and to Vettel they say: “I don’t know why you say goodbye, I say hello.” Danke Seb.
Sources: F1.com, Sky Sports F1.
