Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari warning triggers bold Abu Dhabi 2021 statement
Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton either side of the Drivers' Championship trophy
F1 “will definitely” be in for another Abu Dhabi title showdown in F1 2025, with Tom Coronel predicting a repeat of 2021 as Lewis Hamilton looks to wrestle back the title from Max Verstappen.
Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari is being tipped to reignite his form as the Briton chases that elusive record-breaking eighth World Championship.
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen ‘are going to do it again’
He was a lap away from it in 2021 as, at the end of a hard-fought wheel-to-wheel championship fight against Verstappen, he was leading in Abu Dhabi heading into the final lap of the title decider.
However, a controversial call from then-race director Michael Masi meant the race was restarted with one lap remaining and Verstappen on fresher tyres was able to dive down the inside of Hamilton at Turn 5 to take the lead, the win and the title.
The Red Bull driver has since gone on to string together a run of four World Championships while Hamilton, hampered by Mercedes’ form in the ground-effect aerodynamic era, has now swapped Mercedes for Ferrari in one final throw of the dice.
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It’s shaping up to be the big question of F1 2025: Can Lewis Hamilton fight for that eighth World title with Ferrari?
Coronel believes he can, and that he will push Verstappen all the way to the final chequered flag.
“Yes, this is something I will definitely predict again,” the Dutch racing driver told Motorsport.com.
“In 2021, I’ve been very clear about it: it’s going to happen. The last race. The last corner. The last round. Okay, well, in terms of corner, I was just four off.
“One had to be dethroned. The other wanted to show that he was really the best – which he already was then.
“Only then you have to get it done with the whole team. And of course he has shown that in recent years.
“So yes, I do think it will be the battle between these two. Because if you’re just talking about the two best, fastest drivers – and I’m talking about the whole package – then it’s these two.
“Then it’s Lewis and Max.”
Such was the intensity of the last Verstappen v Hamilton title fight in 2021, the two protagonists claimed 14 one-two finishes in 22 races, which included a run of six that went back and forth to take the title fight to the winner-takes-all finale in Abu Dhabi.
They also had two huge accidents with Hamilton penalised for colliding with Verstappen at the British Grand Prix, sending him hurtling into the tyre wall at speed, while Verstappen was given a three-place grid penalty having finished the Italian Grand Prix with his Red Bull F1 car sitting on top of Hamilton’s Mercedes.
Coronel believes their F1 2025 battle could be as intense, with Hamilton’s Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc also playing a role.
“It’s not for nothing that they were on top of each other in Monza,” he said. “It’s not for nothing that they flew off at Silverstone.
“It is not for nothing that they almost flew into each other’s hair.
“These two are so evenly matched. And then in a different style, in a different way, that I definitely believe that the two will meet in 2025.
“Because in my opinion, the Ferrari is the car we really need to keep an eye on, especially in the combination with Leclerc and Lewis. It is a team that is growing.
“So no, these two are just going to do it again. I have booked another ticket to Abu Dhabi, the last race.”
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