"Max was a little bit too lungey" - Lewis Hamilton's former title rival Nico Rosberg on Max Verstappen's aggressive driving style

Nico Rosberg has backed the stewards' decision to not investigate the first lap incident between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton at the Abu Dhabi GP. Hamilton's former title rival feels the decision was appropriate considering Verstappen’s move was aggressive.

Speaking at Sky Sports' F1 interview after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the 2016 F1 world champion and former Mercedes driver said:

“Oh my goodness, so difficult. “I think it’s OK what they done. Max was a little bit too lungey, a little bit too aggressive, forcing Lewis (Hamilton) out too strongly, even though he had the right to the corner there because he was massively ahead. And then I would say that Lewis didn’t give back everything that he gained, so it’s tough, but I think it’s OK like this.”

Max Verstappen started at pole position at Yas Marina but lost the lead to Lewis Hamilton inside turn 1. According to Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, Verstappen experienced too much wheel-spin and was bogged down at the start.

Nevertheless, Max's soft tires allowed Max Verstappen to get a good run on Lewis Hamilton by the turn 6 chicane. Verstappen then got ahead of Hamilton before the corner apex, braked later, and managed to keep his four wheels within the confines of the track.

However, Lewis Hamilton cut the chicane, avoiding contact with Verstappen’s Red Bull. The Englishman arrived at the next corner with an increased time advantage over Verstappen.

The FIA sporting regulations forbids drivers from running across the track to gain a “lasting advantage”. In previous races, stewards have always asked any driver who did so to return the place back to the pursuing driver.

Examples of such occurrences include Verstappen in Saudi Arabia, Fernando Alonso and Antonio Giovinazzi in the United States. The controversial decision not to investigate the incident raised further questions about the stewards' consistency.

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Mercedes may decide against challenging Max Verstappen’s F1 world title

The 2021 F1 season witnessed one of the closest championship battles in the history of the sport. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were level on points heading into the final race of the season. They needed to outscore each other to clinch the title.

Lewis Hamilton was in pole position for the majority of the race and was seconds within reach of achieving his eighth world title. However, a late safety car intervention and pragmatic interpretation of sporting regulations from the race director allowed Max Verstappen to beat Hamilton to the title.

Soon after the final classifications were published on Sunday, Mercedes lodged two protests with the FIA. The first one claimed that Max Verstappen overtook the safety car before the safety car line. The second accusation was against race director Michael Masi for abusing the regulations to “manufacture” the result.

Mercedes came prepared with a high-level arbitration lawyer for the stewards' hearings. They wanted the classification to reflect the lap prior to the last lap, thereby giving the win to Lewis Hamilton. The stewards rejected both protests and confirmed that Max Verstappen is the 2021 F1 world champion.

However, all F1 teams have the right to appeal any rulings made by the FIA stewards at the International Court of Appeal in Paris. Mercedes have notified the FIA of their intent to do just that.

However, due to FIA regulations, the teams are only allowed to take their case in front of a panel appointed by the FIA. This would mean that Mercedes would be asking the FIA to find itself guilty of abusing the regulations. It is an unlikely outcome.

Furthermore, the lengthy legal process could negatively impact Mercedes’ brand. Therefore, they might choose not to challenge the stewards' decision and accept the results.