Daniel Ricciardo ‘fed up’ after revealing issue with F1 2021 finale in Abu Dhabi

Ricciardo says that he “felt for” Lewis Hamilton after the contentious ending to the 2021 Formula 1 season

Daniel Ricciardo does believe that progress has been made since the end of the 2021 season (Getty Images)

Daniel Ricciardo has said that he “gets a little bit fed up” with drivers not being allowed to race as they wish in Formula 1, but thinks that progress has been made since the controversial ending to the 2021 season.

Max Verstappen secured his first F1 world title at the season-concluding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, over-taking Lewis Hamilton on the final lap of the Yas Marina Circuit after the intervention of race director Michael Masi.

Masi has since been removed from his role after receiving significant criticism for the part he played in setting up Verstappen for a title-winning move.

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Masi has been replaced for 2022 by a two-pronged team of Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich, who rotate in the lead role and are assisted by veteran Herbie Blash as part of wider changes to race direction.

McLaren’s Ricciardo believes that more support is a good thing, though the Australian does fear that drivers are now perhaps overly controlled.

“It was what it was,” Ricciardo said of the conclusion to the season in Abu Dhabi to 10 Sport. “Whether it was a wrong decision, a bad decision, a good, a right, whatever, I think it kind of highlighted that probably the issue wasn’t necessarily Michael [Masi] or with Michael. It’s the broader picture.

“A person in his position not having enough support and then too much interference. That I didn’t like. Watching [the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix], the race before that, all this arguing during a race. It also doesn’t look professional. It all got a little bit messy.

“It sounds like we’re definitely going forward and trying to learn from things that weren’t executed well, but not every driver has the same idea about how to go racing.

“Sometimes I do get a little bit fed up with it and it should be we just race how we want to race and if someone serves it to us, then they can expect to get a dish back to them, and that’s old school.

“At times because it’s so hard to come up with solutions, if you do me wrong then just expect that it’s going to come back to you and maybe that is — I don’t want to speak out of like ego or anything — but it’s just maybe that is just the way that we all get respect because we know that we’re going to get it back so maybe we all just stay a little under.”

Daniel Ricciardo believes things are improving in F1 (Getty Images)

Ricciardo finished 12th in Abu Dhabi, and was the first lapped car behind Verstappen at the point the race was contentiously restarted.

The 32-year-old believes it remains hard to assess the process that led to an unpopular end to a gripping title rivalry - though Ricciardo admits he did “feel for” a beaten Hamilton, who was denied a record eighth world title.

“At the time, I couldn’t believe what happened. I remember 2008 when the championship ended on the final lap and I was like ‘that will never happen again’,” Ricciardo explained.

“And I was seeing it happen in front of me and I was just like ‘oh my god’.

“I felt for Lewis because no safety car or whatever and he’s probably just having a comfortable win. I put myself probably more in his shoes that night and was just like ‘oh, that hurts’.

“It’s hard because probably with hindsight, you’d say ‘yes we red flag the race, everyone can put on whatever tyres they want and we do a standing start for the last five laps or whatever.

“But then it’s like, to finish under safety car you’re going to get a lot of scrutiny even if it’s maybe the right thing. You’re still going to get ‘well you can’t finish a world title under a safety car’.”