F1 2021 season’s controversial end decided on Pirelli soft tyres

Max Verstappen and Red Bull used a fresher but used Pirelli P Zero soft tyre to overcome Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes on a 43-lap old hard tyre in a single lap showdown to win the Formula One Drivers Championship. The controversy about how F1 contrived to supply this conclusion to the 2021 season at Yas Marina continues to rage. The intense coverage beyond the usual race weekend press generated by the controversy builds upon a season in which F1 has considerably refreshed its profile; it has gained improved global interest via the Netflix documentary Drive to Survive, a roster of drivers invigorated by some new faces, and a schedule expanding outside its traditional European base. Exclusive tyre supplier Pirelli’s head of F1 and car racing Mario Isola said: “It’s been an absolutely incredible season with some of the most intense competition we can remember: a fitting way to close the chapter on 13-inch tyres before starting a new one with 18 inches.”

Pirelli has stayed on at Yas Marina to hold the first post-season test of its new 18-inch tyre range. The test will proceed on 14-15 December, with the manufacturer’s range of C1-C5 (hard to soft) compounds available in varying numbers to the teams. George Russell will take the wheel for Mercedes on both days, while Verstappen will pilot the Red Bull in his first outing as champion. Nine teams will complete testing, with Ferrari running two cars on the 18” Pirelli tyre.

Key moments in the title decider

Verstappen won his first world title in Abu Dhabi with three pit stops, taking the lead on the final lap after stopping for P Zero Red soft tyres during a safety car. Verstappen started from pole on the soft compound but was passed by his title rival Hamilton who began the race on the P Zero Yellow medium. Verstappen was the first of the two to make his stop from soft to P Zero White hard on lap 13, followed one lap later by Hamilton, who switched from medium to hard. Verstappen then made a second stop for hard tyres under a virtual safety car on lap 36 before his third and final stop for softs under a full safety car with five laps to go.

There was a wide variety of strategies seen throughout the race, with five different run plans in the top five at the finish, influenced also by the safety car periods.

Eight drivers – including the polesitter – began the race on the soft compound, with nine on the medium and just two (AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly and Alpine driver Fernando Alonso) on the hard tyre: both of whom finished in the points.

The race got underway in warm and dry conditions with 28 degrees centigrade asphalt and 25 degrees ambient: similar to qualifying and staying consistent to the finish.

Pirelli said the Hard C3 tyre was instrumental in the race. The compound completed some long stints while offering very good and consistent performance. Verstappen set the fastest race lap on the tyre, while Hamilton ran the tyre for his last 44 laps with low wear and degradation.

The Medium C4 compound was used during the first stint by around half the field, with Hamilton able to take the lead off the line on this compound. His teammate Valtteri Bottas did 30 laps on them during his opening stint (a total of 35 laps on that set, as it was also used in qualifying).

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes and Max Verstappen, Red Bull battle for the lead on first corner during the Abu Dhabi GP at Yas Marina Circuit (Photo by Simon Galloway / LAT Images)

The Soft C5 compound displayed similar behaviour to the medium, and was key to Verstappen’s title and win, when he used it for the final racing lap to pass Hamilton after the safety car re-start. This compound performed in line with expectations, with very few signs of abrasion, Pirelli added.

Isola added: “We had a tense and strategic battle for the championship, when a virtual safety car and then a full safety car provided two pivotal moments. Max Verstappen pitted for new tyres on each occasion and tried to hunt down Lewis Hamilton, who stayed out and managed his tyres well to the finish, but could do nothing about the effect of Verstappen’s fresh soft tyres on the final lap.

“From the beginning, the two title protagonists had diverging strategies, starting on different compounds and adopting different strategies, which we saw all the way down the field; thanks also to the unpredictable nature of this race. All three compounds played an important role, standing up extremely well to the challenge of this new track layout and contributing to a thrilling finale.

“Congratulations to Max Verstappen for his first title and to Mercedes for clinching the constructors’ championship.”