Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG, leading in front of Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing Honda during the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, on the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Picture: Antonin Vincent
JEDDAH – Lewis Hamilton edged out Max Verstappen to win a chaotic and controversial Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday to send the title battle to the final race in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
The two men are level on points ahead of the decider after an incident-packed street race in Jeddah saw two red flag stoppages.
Verstappen picked up a five-second penalty after a controversial move on world champion Hamilton with the British seven-time champion accusing the Dutchman of ‘brake-testing’ him.
ALSO READ: Hat-trick win for Hamilton in Jeddah will take title fight to Abu Dhabi
Hamilton had sped away from pole position before the balance of power shifted after 10 laps when Mick Schumacher buried his Haas in a barrier.
Hamilton and Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas pitted under the safety car but Verstappen stayed out.
LEWIS: "I've been racing a long time, but that was incredibly tough! I tried to be as tough and as sensible as I could out there, with all my experience over the years... It as difficult, but we persevered as a team"#SaudiArabianGP 🇸![CDATA[]]>🇦 #F1 pic.twitter.com/chzxvXuiaW
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
Four laps later, the race was red-flagged to allow the barriers to be repaired which enabled Verstappen to pit, change tyres and resume the race in the lead.
RACE REPORT: Hamilton takes win #103 to draw level on points with Verstappen ahead of title decider in Abu Dhabi#SaudiArabianGP 🇸![CDATA[]]>🇦 #F1 https://t.co/VaAzKtJirq
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
On the restart, Hamilton reclaimed the lead but claimed he was forced off the track by Verstappen.
Moments later there was another red flag as Sergio Perez, George Russell and Nikita Mazepin all collided at the rear of the field.
The stewards decided that Verstappen’s manoeuvre was illegal and promoted Alpine’s Esteban Ocon to pole for the third start of the race, with Hamilton in second and Verstappen in third.
Amazingly, Verstappen then took the lead again with Hamilton following through.
The moment @LewisHamilton drew level in the championship fight, with victory in Saudi Arabia ⚔️#SaudiArabianGP 🇸🇦 #F1 pic.twitter.com/plmETztmoh
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 5, 2021
However the drama and controversy continued when they collided late in the race.
Hamilton said he had been brake-tested and Verstappen was penalised by the stewards before the Briton swept past and on to victory.
Bottas was third in his penultimate race for Mercedes.
AFP