Wolff recalls ‘unheard of’ element in painful Hamilton experience

Toto Wolff has reflected on what unfolded in the closing laps of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2021, lamenting what transpired at the Yas Marina Circuit.

The controversial end to a contentious season saw then-F1 race director Michael Masi's interpretation of the sporting regulations cost Lewis Hamilton a record-breaking eighth drivers' championship.

Whilst breaking down the various options open to the Australian in that high-stakes title showdown, the Mercedes team principal highlighted how in "no scenario" should his former driver have been able to be passed by the chasing Max Verstappen, who went on to claim the first of his four F1 drivers' crowns.

Wolff labelled what happened "unheard of" when addressing what is - and will long be - one of F1's most-disputed and heavily-debated episodes.

"The strict interpretation of the rules is you need to unlap the cars and make them join at the back," the Austrian said on the Armchair Experts with Dax Shepard podcast.

"So, tick box one, we win the championship - it's clear, because there's not enough laps left and the race finishes under safety car.

"The second version is, once you make the cars unlap, you need one more lap before green flag. We win the championship.

"The third one was more of an outlier against the rules, but we could understand [it, if used], is give it the last lap, so you have a green flag lap and not behind a safety car, then Lewis would have won because there was a few cars in between, [even though] it was not part of the rule.

"We couldn't have pitted for fresh tyres because we were in the lead, we would have given up position and then the race would have ended up under yellow or safety car, so we would have lost the race.

"So five laps to the end, we are world champions. There is no scenario... and then someone [Michael Masi] decides the world championship should end with a lap - and unlapping those cars in the middle is unheard of."

It is a series of events that led to the infamous "No Michael, no! That is so not right!" radio message that was broadcast between Wolff and Masi after Red Bull had successfully argued their case for the race to re-commence with just one lap to run and no cars between Hamilton and Verstappen.

In Wolff's view, Masi's intervention was an over-reach, with the Australian looking for a solution that "was not in the rule book", let alone something that open to his discretion.

He argued that the decision stacks up against some of the most contentious rulings made across other high-level sports.

"Probably in most sports," the 52-year replied when it was put that Masi's decision was the most controversial aspect of all.

"Because it was so clear that the referee decided to do something which was not in the rule book, not even a judgement call, but just not in the rule book."