Max Verstappen’s mechanic recalls the moment he felt Red Bull had ‘absolutely blown’ 2021 title chances

The 2021 F1 season marked the beginning of Max Verstappen’s dominance in the sport. It was one of the most dramatic and controversial campaigns in history.

While epic for neutrals, the battle between Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton was one of the most bitter in F1 history. The Mercedes and Red Bull drivers were barely separable all season.

The duo collided numerous times throughout the year. At Silverstone, Verstappen suffered a mega impact into the barriers at Copse corner – for which Hamilton served a 10-second penalty but later won the race.

They collided again in Monza, this time Verstappen was blamed for the crash. The rivalry even boiled over to the teams, with Toto Wolff and Christian Horner having huge tension off the track – which is still evident to this day.

Wolff admitted he should have called Jos Verstappen after his son’s crash at Silverstone to check on him – he had been taken to hospital after such a huge crash.

What reached boiling point for Mercedes and Red Bull’s rivalry was the events of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – a race that will be forever ingrained in fans’ minds.

Calum Nicholas recalls feeling Red Bull had ‘absolutely blown’ the 2021 title in Abu Dhabi

Hamilton and Verstappen went into the race on equal points. It was a winner-takes-all situation and the former had the advantage in the closing stages.

The seven-time champion was on older tyres when the Williams of Nicholas Latifi crashed into the barriers late on. Approaching the final lap under the safety car with Hamilton leading from Verstappen, lapped cars between the drivers were allowed to pass by race director Michael Masi.

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On fresher tyres, Verstappen passed Hamilton on the final lap to win his maiden title. The incredible controversy is still talked about to this day, with the Mercedes driver being cruelly denied a record eighth championship.

Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas recalled feeling the team had ‘absolutely blown’ it in Abu Dhabi. Hamilton had been closing the gap over the previous events and was set to win the title before the safety car.

“Mercedes were just gaining ground, gaining ground. Lewis was gaining ground race on race like Saudi and Brazil, all these races towards the end of the year and we’re just like: ‘Oh my god, we’re really in it”, he said.

“So it was tough that weekend in Abu Dhabi. [There] was obviously a huge amount of pressure, for most of that race it looked like we’d sort of blown it.

“I speak about in my book, I talk about sitting with a colleague out the back of the garage part way through that race going: ‘I can’t believe we’ve screwed this up, I can’t believe we’ve allowed it to get this bad.’

“And him saying to me: ‘Oh, you never know, anything can happen’, and I was like: ‘Ah come on Steve. We’ve got no chance here mate, we’ve absolutely blown this.’

“I walk back in the garage and Latifi was in the wall and suddenly everything changed.”

Could Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton reignite their rivalry in 2025?

Wolff says Horner should have acknowledged Hamilton’s heartbreak after the race in Abu Dhabi. Since that event, Verstappen has been utterly dominant in F1.

The 27-year-old has won 43 of the last 68 Grand Prix, winning four consecutive championships as Red Bull aced the ground effect regulations.

Verstappen was not as dominant in 2024 as the RB20 regressed in performance. Despite a challenge from McLaren and Ferrari in the second half of the season, the Dutchman beat Lando Norris by 63 points for his fourth crown.

Verstappen is the driver to beat in 2025 but he will not have it easy from the McLarens and Ferraris – and he could even reignite his infamous rivalry with Hamilton.

The 40-year-old will be revitalised at Ferrari after a disappointing end to his 12-year stint at Mercedes. Hamilton could reach a new level at Ferrari if they can give him a winning car.

Tom Coronel expects Verstappen to have a ‘very intense’ battle with Hamilton in 2025. The former is looking to become the second driver ever to win five consecutive titles while the latter wants to secure the eighth title he lost in 2021.