Verstappen grateful to his teammates after winning the championship

Max Verstappen admits he will not be able to win F1 2021 without the support of Sergio Perez. “I fought the whole race, until I had a chance in the last lap. It was extraordinary. I don’t know what to say. Red Bull and Honda deserve this championship,” Verstappen said after finishing the Grand Prix. Abu Dhabi.

Verstappen grateful to his teammates after winning the championship

Beating direct competitor Lewis Hamilton for the 10th time in the race in 2021, Verstappen won F1 for the first time at the age of 24. However, as the Dutch driver himself admits, he will not finish first at Yas Marina yesterday and was crowned world champion, without the help of Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.

Taking the lead in the race after Verstappen and Hamilton returned to the pit to change tires, Perez defended fiercely, not allowing Hamilton to regain the lead from lap 15 to lap 21. The Mexican driver helped his teammates close the gap. from five seconds down to just over a second and damaged Hamilton’s tires significantly. Perez was then unable to finish the race.

Angered at being held back by Perez, Hamilton said over Mercedes radio: “He had a couple of dangerous racing situations.”

Meanwhile, over Red Bull’s radio, Verstappen shouted: “Checo is legendary”. Checo is Perez’s nickname. After the race, the new F1 champion continued to praise his teammates: “It’s crazy. I won this championship because of Checo. I want to thank him. Checo is such a great teammate.”

Perez just moved to Red Bull this season after his success with Racing Point last year. The Mexican driver replaced Alex Albon and played an important role, helping Red Bull to end Mercedes’ seven-year dominance even once only in Azerbaijan.

“Today is an important day. I am happy for Max and Red Bull. I am happy to hold Hamilton for a few seconds, and make a little difference for Max. If he were in my position, he would do it too. so,” Perez said after the race.

Perez finished the season in fourth place, equal to last year, but with a score of 190 – his personal record in 10 years in F1.