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2 years ago, the 2021 F1 Abu Dhabi GP was the epicenter of one of the sport's most controversial moments in history. With just one lap left, Michael Masi decided to end the safety car period, only letting some of the cars unlap themselves and restart the race.
As a result, a championship that was hanging in the balance was turned on its head. Both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were level on points heading into the last race of the season. The one that finished ahead would be the world champion.
At the time of the restart, Lewis Hamilton was leading the race and hence was in a position to win the title. However, he was also on older tires while Max Verstappen had used the safety car period to pit for fresher tires. As a result, Lewis was a sitting duck at the time of the restart.
Max Verstappen went on to overtake him at the very first braking point and took the lead and with it the title. The way the race ended was controversial and it shook the sport from within. It led to Michael Masi losing his job and leaving the fans outraged.
So much so that the wounds are still fresh in the minds of many Lewis Hamilton fans. Having said that, two years since this happened, has F1 learned from one of its biggest scandals? Let's take a look at some of the factors that led to the 'AD 2021' debacle and whether those factors have been mitigated or not.
Before we proceed there's one thing we need to understand here. 'AD 2021' should not be looked at in isolation. It was a capitulation of what had been building up throughout the season. A pressure cooker scenario that caused an implosion of sorts from the race director.
Let's take a look at the factors that led to one of the more controversial moments in F1 history.
What went wrong?
Inconsistent application of rules by stewards
One of the biggest issues throughout the season was the inability of the stewards to stay consistent with their decision-making. Stewarding inconsistency is something that has been raised as an issue by the teams for a long time. It is these inconsistencies that left teams and drivers disgruntled time and again. With the stakes for the title battle being higher, every decision became even more critical and hence was looked at through a fine-toothed comb.
FIA's inability to be ready for any possibility
There were a couple of moments when the FIA was caught off-guard when it came to taking a call in a certain situation. Instead of being prepared for such an eventuality, the race director Michael Masi executed things in the worst possible manner.
The way in which the 2021 F1 Belgian GP was executed left a bad taste in the mouth of everyone involved. Most of all, the race director did not appear to have a set plan in place should the race get washed out.
Race director being too distracted and not respected enough
Arguably one of the biggest sources of entertainment for F1 fans but a nightmare for Michael Masi was Christian Horner and Toto Wolff shouting in his ear throughout the race. The 2021 F1 season was the first time a direct line was established between the race director and team principals. What made it worse was that the conversation was broadcast to the millions watching the race.
This was just too much pressure on Michael Masi and he was constantly bullied and distracted during the race with both Horner and Wolff shouting in his ear. What made the situation worse was the lack of respect for Michael Masi as compared to his predecessor Charlie Whiting. Masi was still getting used to his role as a race director and hadn't grown into it fully. As a result, he just couldn't command the respect that his predecessor might have in these situations.
Has F1 fixed it?
Now let's take a look at whether steps have been taken to fix some of these issues. Let's take a look.
Inconsistent application of rules by stewards
In all fairness, this issue still remains. Even now drivers have come up and complained about a lack of consistency in the application of rules. Last season, Haas team principal called this out and even this season he was forced to apologize for his remarks about the stewards.
Guenther Steiner is not the only one however as even Fernando Alonso has complained about this. In terms of consistency, the FIA stewards still have a long way to go and this was evidenced when Max Verstappen was somehow not penalized for the impeding incidents in Singapore, and the entire precedent was just thrown out of the window.
Has FIA made strides in bringing consistency to its decision-making? It's hard to say yes to this one.
FIA's inability to be ready for any possibility
The 2023 F1 Las Vegas GP was the perfect example of how the FIA is still unprepared when it comes to a few unforeseen situations. The Las Vegas track was not homologated on time and even when it was, the manhole cover incident could have been far more serious.
The fact that the entire FP1 had to be canceled and FP2 delayed was a sign of how unprepared the FIA was. That wasn't the end of it though as Carlos Sainz had to take a 10-place grid penalty for changing the power unit because the previous one was damaged by the manhole.
Such things might not matter much in a season where the stakes aren't that high. Imagine if something similar happened in a title fight. Imagine if something like this had happened in 2021 to either Lewis or Max. FIA has still not become professional enough to tackle these situations.
Race director being too distracted and not respected enough
This is however one area where F1 did act swiftly. The nuisance that was the team radio communication with the race director was ended with immediate effect. The next step however is a more critical one. Can we claim that the current race director commands the respect of the drivers and teams alike? The answer to that question is probably no at this point in time and that's something that F1 might need to work on.
Conclusion
Finally, if we look at the factors on either side it's safe to say that while F1 might have mitigated some of the major issues that were right in front of it, the core issues still remain. FIA is still not as efficient as it should be and the race director is still not respected as much as he needs to be to sometimes impose tough decisions.
If we do end up with a season similar to the one in 2021 it's hard to say that the FIA or F1 for that matter is equipped enough to handle it.
