The build-up to the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has taken a dramatic flip, even earlier than vehicles line up for qualifying, after the FIA confirmed its stewarding lineup for the title-deciding weekend.
What ought to have been a routine announcement instantly triggered intense backlash on-line as soon as followers seen that the panel contains a number of officers who presided over the notorious 2021 Abu Dhabi finale, the place misplaced the title to .
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Race winner and 2021 F1 World Drivers Champion Max Verstappen is congratulated by runner-up within the race and championship Lewis Hamilton on the 2021 F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi. Mahmoud Khaled – Formulation 1/Formulation 1 through Getty Pictures
Making issues much more contentious, the listing additionally options Derek Warwick, who was suspended through the 2025 Canadian GP weekend concerning the drivers. His return for the season’s largest race has solely amplified the outcry.
The announcement immediately exploded throughout social media, with 1000’s of followers expressing uneasiness concerning the FIA’s determination and the way it would possibly have an effect on the championship struggle.
Followers React: 2021 Déjà vu
Reactions ranged from shock to frustration to outright satire. Some followers admitted the information gave them “distasteful aftertaste recollections of 2021”.
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Others sarcastically recommended they had been “shocked the FIA didn’t convey Michael Masi again too,” referencing the previous race director accountable for the AD21 safety-car name.
A wave of feedback predicted “a controversial 10-second penalty incoming for one of many title contenders,” whereas others tried to calm the controversy, arguing that “the 2021 catastrophe was all the way down to race route, not the stewards, they didn’t make the improper calls.”
Then-FIA Formulation 1 Race Director Michael Masi throughout previews forward of the 2021 F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi. (Photograph by )Bryn Lennon/Getty Pictures
Some handled the state of affairs humorously, joking that between Max Verstappen and throughout FP2 was “a glimpse of what’s coming this Sunday.”
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Whereas the tone assorted, one theme was constant: followers are bracing for controversy earlier than the race has even begun.
Why the Timing Makes It Worse
The AD21 continues to be considered some of the controversial race endings in Formulation 1. The stewarding and race-management calls from that night proceed to divide followers at present, and the occasion stands as a cultural flashpoint every time officiating is mentioned in Formulation 1.
Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, and Oscar Piastri on the previews forward of the 2025 F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi. Clive Mason/Getty Pictures
The stress across the steward lineup is amplified by the stakes of the 2025 season:
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Three drivers: Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, and , stay in competition for the World Championship.
Latest observe classes have already delivered flashpoints, together with Norris and Verstappen’s near-collision in FP2 that drew a stewards’ notice for impeding.
The shadow of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the place a extremely disputed race-management name determined the championship final result, nonetheless looms massive over Formulation 1, and this similarity in officiating personnel has deepened fan anxiousness.
Given this backdrop, many followers worry that even the looks of bias may set off chaos if the title is set by penalties, safety-car rulings, or post-race investigations.
Whether or not this turns into nothing greater than pre-race noise or the beginning of a saga relies upon fully on how cleanly Sunday performs out.
This story was initially printed by on Dec 6, 2025, the place it first appeared within the part. Add Athlon Sports activities as a
