Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2021

Hamilton wins Hawthorn Trophy for 11th time

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In the round-up: Lewis Hamilton has been awarded the Hawthorn Memorial Trophy for the 11th time in his career.

In brief

Hamilton wins Hawthorn Trophy for 11th time

Despite missing out on the Formula 1 world championship for the first time in five years, Hamilton continued his streak of Hawthorn Memorial Trophy wins, taking his eighth in a row. The prize is named in honour of Britain’s first world champion, Mike Hawthorn, who died shortly after claiming the 1958 title

The prize is awarded to the Commonwealth driver who achieves the best result in the F1 world championship. It was announced at Motorsport UK’s Night of Champions event at the Royal Automobile Club in London.

Hamilton has now won the trophy 11 times in his 15-year F1 career. He missed out in 2009 and 2011 when Jenson Button won and in 2010 and 2013 when Mark Webber triumphed. He already holds the record for most wins which was previously held by Nigel Mansell, with seven.

Other awards recipients included Jackie Stewart (lifetime achievement), Jamie Chadwick (UK driver of the year) and Patrick O’Donovan (young driver of the year).

Trio involved in race-stopping FR Asia shunt

Formula 2 driver Cem Bolukbasi was one of three drivers involved in a heavy crash which caused the third race of the new Formula Regional Asian Championship to be red-flagged. Bolukbasi failed to get away from 10th on the grid and was struck by two drivers who started behind him, Amna Al Qubaisi and Salih Yoluc. All three confirmed on social media they avoided serious injuries in the crash, though Qubaisi was taken to hospital for alchecks.

Gabriele Mini won the restarted race and took the championship lead. Gabriel Bortoleto won the second race earlier in the day after Sebastien Montoya’s victory in Saturday’s season-opener.

Mercedes junior Antonelli leads Formula 4 UAE

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Formula 4 UAE, Yas Marina, 2022
Antonelli started his season with an incredibly narrow win
Mercedes junior driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli has taken a healthy lead in the championship after the first round of the UAE Formula 4 championship.

Antonelli sits 35 points clear of Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak after four races around the Yas Marina circuit last weekend. After winning the opening two races, Antonelli took the chequered flag first in race three, only to be struck with a post-race penalty. The Prema driver then stormed from 12th on the grid to take second place in the fourth and final race.

It is 15-year-old Antonelli’s first full year of car racing. He previously competed in the Italian F4 championship last year, taking three podium finishes.

Natori sidelined for 2022 season

Japanese Super Formula Lights champion Teppei Natori says he will not race in 2022 after failing in his efforts to return to European-based competition. Natori, who is believed to have been in talks to enter Formula 2, said in a social media post he will take a break from racing this year and aims to return in 2023.

Loeb and Galmiche make history in Rally Monte Carlo

Nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb and co-driver Isabelle Galmiche won a dramatic opening round of the World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo, beating reigning champion Sebastien Ogier.

Galmiche became the first woman to win a WRC rally since Fabrizia Pons won the same event in 1997 with driver Piero Liatti.

Loeb also became the oldest ever winning driver in the World Rally Championship. Ogier had been leading, before a puncture on the final morning handed the lead back to Loeb. Were it not for a ten second time penalty on the final stage for jumping the start, Loeb’s winning margin would have been just half a second.

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Comment of the day

This weekend’s Caption Competition winner is @red-andy:
Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 2021

After another spate of tyre failures, a Pirelli investigation reveals that, for once, debris isn’t to blame.
Red Andy

Thanks to everyone who came up with caption idea this week – there really were some fittingly sharp suggestions. Special mentions to Tom L, Scalextric, @omarr-pepper and RocketTankski

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Ling!

On this day in motorsport

Author information

Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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59 comments on “Hamilton wins Hawthorn Trophy for 11th time”

  1. In trying to explain Masi’s travesty of race direction at Abu Dhabi, i explain it such:
    Suppose two football teams reach the last game wiith equal goal differences and a one point difference in their tally.

    This last game will decide who wins the trophy.

    At the last minute of the game, team B is about to lodge the deciding goal when the referee signals an inexistent foul, stops the game, seizes the ball and carries it to team B’s penalty point and has team A convert that penalty into the wining goal.

    A is Champion!!!

    1. Are we still doing this?

      1. Some just won’t let it lie – and even when the investigation is complete there will be those that call it a fraud and those that herald it as correct, while the rest of us just look forward to seeing the new cars on track.

        1. Why should anyone let it lie, it was an appalling farce and ruined the end of a great championship. That being said I don’t see why it needs to be raised in every comment section including those that have nothing that really adds to the debate in the article. Had I wanted to make a point to ask people not to post about it then perhaps I’d have started there.

          1. HI @slowmo – I wasn’t asking people to stop, what good would that do? I was observing that no matter what happens people will still prattle on abut it. It’s the internet, its what people do – there are whiners and whingers on both sides and all it takes is one of these marks to start banging on their skewed point of view and it’s all shouty again.

            There will come a time when the whining stops and the racing starts (no-doubt giving different reasons for the whining to start of course).

          2. @ahxshades I have some sympathy in respect that I don’t think there is anything new worth discussing on the issue until the FIA release their investigation findings. The issue is divisive but ultimately you’re right we don’t need to keep having the same arguments for 3 months until the FIA announce their findings on it. I doubt the whining will ever stop fully though as much like the Schumacher move on Hill in 94, this will be remembered forever now for the farce rather than the performances of both contenders throughout the year for many.

        2. I want to be looking forward to 2022 but I’m wondering if I will be disappointed when Gasley is on the verge of his WDC and Masi throws a curve ball and Max gets his 2nd.

          We know it’s a possibility so should j bother to continue to prioritise my weekends around F1 or should I just spend my money on yet more bike bits?

          1. Hey @9chris9 – work on the bike man, at least you can control whats happening there. Then just watch the races as what they are – Sports Entertainment.

          2. I reckon F1 would much prefer Gasly get his first WDC and have 3 different champions in 3 consecutive years, @9chris9.

            But still, if you think there’s a conspiracy before anything even starts for the year, you might as well not watch it at all.

      2. I hate to say this but get used to it. It’s never going to end.

    2. Quick question, in your explanation was Latiffi’s crash supposed to be the referee, the inexistent foul or the seizing of the ball..? Or just ignored completely..?

      Maybe in 2023 you can post this again with some more clarity for us all.

      Go team A btw ! :)

    3. The outcome of the investigation will however be quite simple: proceedings as we’ve grown accustomed to, were not followed. However it is at the race directors discretion to deviate should circumstances require it.
      The cause of this deviation lies predominantly at Mercedes and in particular Toto Wolff but also partly at RedBull as two teams have enforced extraordinary pressure on Race Control. Therefore no further action are needed bar the stripping of teams rights to communicate with race control other than over matters that involve safety.

      1. @Mayrton Discretion, yes, but nothing required deviation in that case.

      2. If that’s the outcome, and there are no regulation changes or clarifications to stop such a farce occurring again, then my 30+ year relationship with F1 is over. However, I suspect you’re right. The FIA don’t admit when they are in the wrong, the investigation will just legitimise and strengthen the “god powers” of the race director, you’ll see increased numbers of farcical decisions next year to “improve the show”, and you can enjoy your made-for-TV reality show.

        1. That same relationship that was fine with the track parameters being changed halfway through the race?
          That same relationship that was fine with the red flag rule enabling someone to fix his car which he damaged when he parked it in the wall?
          That same relationship that was fine when a driver deliberately send a fellow driver to the hospital, was allowed to fix the car he himself damaged and only got a 10 second time penalty instead of a black flag?

          Hmmmm, hypocri..something something….

          1. the brake test on a narrow 300+ straight was the only situation of a black flag last year, not when max overaggressively turned in while ham was alongside in the british gp.

        2. I am afraid so. The need to push back the likes of Toto and Christian will prevail over taking real measures. I don’t like it either (the prevailing part that is, silencing Toto and Christian in itself is long overdue IMHO) but I bet this will be the outcome. It has become about showing power (rather than fixing issues) given Toto’s relentless continuing nagging off season. Some irony there as I expect him to be slapped the most in the outcome of the investigation. If they subsequently tune down the ‘for the sake of the show’ element then all is not lost, but Liberty icw FIA so far shows to be a dangerous combination.

          1. If they subsequently tune down the ‘for the sake of the show’ element then all is not lost

            It is for me. If they leave the race director with absolute power to ignore any and all rules around the safety car (and race starts) and make up new ones on a whim, F1 is dead to me. I will leave others to enjoy their motor-WWE, mourn and move on.

          2. You and me both

            And this “let’s move on” and “let it lie” just because there is a new champion under some of the most contrived circumstances imaginable, will not under any circumstances allow me to consider the series with any credibility again.

            My own series used to run under the same body of rules. It sets a ridiculous precedent that cannot stand across all worldwide racing.

            That from someone who first watched JC at Brands as a 3 year old and regardless of where or what I was in the world have stuck through thick and thin and seen nearly all televised and at least one race live per year. Even when it curtailed my own entries and risked a championship fishing for the season.

            Sorry – let it lie? No thanks.

        3. @drmouse I get your level of anger or disgust and your desire to see a certain outcome or change wrt Masi and/or the Race Director’s power from this or you will walk, I really do, but at the same time I think you go overboard when you suggest that without certain changes as per your opinion or desire there will now be an increase in farcical decisions to improve the show. I highly doubt, pending whatever they decide after they have their investigation into this, that Masi, assuming he will still be RD, will take that as permission to do whatever he wants. I suggest that for all we know Masi would welcome not being put in that spot again. I certainly do not picture him wringing his hands with glee at the chance to manipulate outcomes at will for the sake of the show, such as you would like to portray.

          1. @robbie Fair enough. However, I can see no valid reason not to restrict such powers unless in order to allow them to be used again. IMHO if they are left available, with nothing extra put in place around them, it is a tacit approval of their use this way, which is also a tacit encouragement to do so again… It may be that it doesn’t result in such actions, but I don’t see how anyone can trust that it wouldn’t if the governing body have given approval for it to be done.

            I have the same issue when governments bring in wide-reaching legislation, but then say that the powers it grants will only be used in certain circumstances. If that is the case, the legislation should be restricted to those circumstances. The only reason not to do so is to allow it to be used in other situations, which it inevitably will be if those restrictions are not put in place.

          2. @drmouse Yeah fair point, although I still say that even if Masi is fully cleared and little is changed, we/they all know what backlash was caused, and so I highly doubt they (Masi, FIA, Liberty) would consider that and take nothing extra being put in place as tacit approval and encouragement to do so again. I don’t think they are intentionally out to shoot themselves in the foot, thinking these kinds of controversial decisions would be tolerated en masse, when some will not tolerate even one such decision. It’s certainly going to be fascinating to see what happens with this, and my bottom line is that I have no fear that things are going to get out of hand with increasing numbers of rogue decisions or what have you.

            Taking it to an extreme, governments of countries, provinces, or municipalities do what they do and we can only vote them out every four years or so even when they go rogue (I only dream of quicker accountability than that in politics), but F1 is a business and a sport and I’m sure is always mindful that if they take it too far, well, the fans are their ultimate bosses…we can fire them in the blink of an eye. I really do believe that overwhelmingly Masi, Liberty, Brawn, FIA have our best interests at heart the vast vast majority of the time, all the while it is their entity with which to play at, so the decisions are theirs to make and I’m sure they only want to grow audience, not lose it. That’s why I don’t see tacit permission being taken to go rogue.

          3. @robbie what do you mean about “there will be” a change in decisions to “improve the show”? There already has been a change in the decision making process to “improve the show”.

            We’ve had an individual on this site who works for FOM confirm that Liberty Media successfully exerted pressure on Masi to more liberally use the safety car to close up the field, and to abuse safety processes for the purpose of creating more restarts to “spice up the show” by bringing the cars together.

            We had the crash in Mugello where, after complaints about the way the safety car was being used were raised, individuals researched which part of the circuit drivers were on when the safety car lights were turned off and demonstrated that there was a clear and consistent trend of the safety car lights being turned off later and later in the lap in the races prior to that major crash, with the indication that there was a policy of deliberately turning the lights off later to keep the field more compressed until the last second.

            Consider, also, that we have had serious breaches of safety in several races where the race director was rushing to get proceedings restarted. We’ve had track workers being left out in qualifying in Turkey because Masi assumed they would be clear of the track and didn’t check they had actually finished their work before he restarted the session and near misses between cars and marshals in Imola from Masi instructing drivers to unlap themselves before anybody expected him to, meaning there was not enough time to warn those on track still clearing up debris.

            Did you see Whiting insist in his role as race director that “races must finish under green flags” or place such an emphasis on showmanship when discussing his decisions as Masi does? No – Masi is presenting himself and his role in a very different way to what came just a few years earlier. I feel that race control has, bluntly, become more careless and reckless under Masi with regards to marshal safety because the priority hasn’t been on doing the job safely, but about doing the job quickly so it doesn’t interfere with the schedule.

            I feel it is only a matter of time before something goes wrong, and it will go wrong because Liberty Media are exerting pressure on the race director to create more action on track and because there are too many who are willing to excuse such behaviour as being “part of the show”.

        4. I don’t know how successful arguing for a rules change that prevents the race director from restarting the race despite the track being clear is going to be. Not very, I suppose.

          1. @proesterchen
            Please stop with this rubbish. Taking away the RDs “god power” in this regard would not have prevented him from restarting the race when the track was clear. That could already been done using established and written procedures by doing what he planned to do before Red Bull complained about it: restart the race without allowing any lapped runners through.

            What it would have prevented him doing was inventing a new rule on the spot which handed a massive advantage to only one car on the track, effectively penalising all the others, and massively changing the odds in the championship finale from a rougly-even chance for each to as near a certainty as makes no difference for Max, effectively handing him the championship on a plate.

          2. @drmouse

            I’m sorry, I take it you didn’t like your suggested rules change retold to you in different words.

            which handed a massive advantage to only one car on the track, effectively penalising all the others

            May I instead suggest that when the options are (1) race to the finish and (2) finish under yellow there is exactly and only one car on the track, the leading car, that prefers (2), while to all others (1) with its potential upside is the preferred option? (specific situations like nursing home a damaged car or similar aside)

            This, too, may play into the likeliness (or lack thereof) of such a rules change.

          3. @proesterchen

            I’m pretty sure that only 1 car wanted there to be only 5 cars allowed to unlap themselves. To any others, it had absolutely no beneficial effect doing so.

            Note that I am not arguing t6hat the race should have finished under the SC, as I have stated both above and in many, many other posts. I am saying that the correct and fair way to not finish under the safety car where there is not enough time to correctly follow the unlapping procedure was to restart without allowing any to unlap themselves. This would have followed the rules and met the requirements to “not finish under the SC”. I am pretty sure no driver except Max would have been bothered by this, given the choice between that and what happened, as it would make zero difference to anyone but Max and Lewis, but would not have been half as controversial: It would be following the rules without requiring the interpretation that the RD can do whatever the hell he wants whenever he wants with any of the SC procedures, and the alternative following the written procedures was to finish under the SC.

            The only situation that the current rules, without the RD having “god powers”, would not allow a race finish under green flags is where the track is not clear by the time the SC passes the pit entry on the penultimate lap or an SC worthy incident occurs after that point. However, if we really think it is important enough to finish under green flag conditions, surely it would be better to have written rules to account for those 2 outside cases instead of forcing the RD to make stuff up at the last minute to deal with it.

            So, to refer back to your post:

            I’m sorry, I take it you didn’t like your suggested rules change retold to you in different words.

            As explained above, your post was not even close to retelling my proposed rules changes in different words. It was, at the very best, you misunderstanding either the regulations or what I was saying. At worst, it was a deliberate attempt to discredit my argument by purposely misrepresenting the outcome of such a rule change.

    4. Please explain Silverstone then in your pseudo world too please.
      Would it be something like: Tennis player B walks across court and smashes Tennis player A over the head with his racket, knocks him out cold. Instead of being disqualified, he has his racket repaired for him so he can continue on and win.

      1. I think Steiner summarized that situation quite clearly. Taking a 190 sec penalty, taking out 19 competitors, will have you win every race. That was the message from Race control that day. But some choose to rather just look at the final race as if F1 is not a season sport.

    5. You either forget or ignore that fact that the race was restarted with Hamilton at the lead.
      He lost the lead on the track.

      1. What’s that got to do with it? The only person who was going to beat him that day was Max, once he took him out he was going to outscore him heavily either way.

    6. How many boxes of tissues have you been through since December?

  2. I dare say Valentino Rossi won’t be racing here irrespective of his vaccination status…

  3. CD (@clipperdael)
    24th January 2022, 7:58

    Disastrous first outing for the new i20, Hyundai have their work cut out for them.

    1. @clipperdael Indeed. They started working on the hybrid project later than rivals, but I still didn’t expect them to be as slow & unreliable as they were.
      They’ll have to find performance & reliability fast as otherwise, Neuville’s & Tänak’s championship hopes will fade early.

      1. CD (@clipperdael)
        24th January 2022, 8:19

        Tanak in particular must be quite fed up by now with how his cars keep letting him down. Although to be fair it looked like he brought the radiator issue upon himself when he slid off and hit those rocks in the Sisteron stage.
        M-Sport on the other hand seemed to reap the rewards. So weird to see a happy Greensmith in the post-stage interviews for a change!

  4. I was admittedly happy about Loeb taking a somewhat unexpected win in his (for now) one-off outing.
    He got lucky via Ogier’s puncture on the penultimate stage, but staying within 10-sec behind meant he could use that opportunity, which would’ve been impossible had Ogier’s lead been overly massive.

    Brazil may have an F1 race, but otherwise, I doubt a South American country would get one because the continent generally has seemed quite unfitting for this purpose.

    Testing positive with an insufficient lead time for quarantine means no racing for that individual anywhere in the world, so those words are slightly misleading since the point itself is about being fully vaccinated & at least all drivers should already be.
    BTW, scheduling the AusGP as round 3 isn’t only about COVID lead time, but also Ramadan, which is why 2023 will most likely also start with a Middle Eastern double-header but March 12 & 19. In this scenario, the only way for a Melbourne opener would be a March 5 forming a triple-header or as a standalone on February’s last Sunday.
    Anyway, this matter is a later worry.

  5. I’d like to hope that all the drivers and team members are vaccinated and boosted by now, but I also distinctly remember Hamilton posting that anti-vax post in 2020 and getting roasted over it, if I remember things correctly he then deleted it and posted a “I’m just asking questions about the side-effects” excuse that still kind of made it sound like he was anti-vax. Now I believe this was before the vaccines were available, so hopefully he changed his stance after that, but I still wonder.

    1. I think Hamilton has made his support for vaccination clear since then, @sjaakfoo, including participating in an F1 video encouraging people to get their vaccine.

      1. So wonder no more.

      2. social media video participation is mandatory, so that doesn’t tell us much. But I hope you’re right.

        1. He did seem to be leading from the front when it came to calling for the 2020 season opener in Australia to be cancelled. Not quite the same I know but at least he accepted it existed!

    2. He made a legitimate point about asking about side effects and funding. Asking questions doesn’t mean you’re anti-vax, it means you’re anti-herd mentality.

      His first post was unfortunate, as Hamilton didn’t read the fine print (ie, the snarkogram attached to the video).

      But as far as I know, all the F1 drivers are vaccinated, and Hamilton in particular has been quite vocal about people getting vaccinated– which makes Westacott’s comments seem a bit bombastic, but clueless.

  6. Re headline article. Other award recipients include Ann Bradshaw (Lifetime Achievement)

    1. And tomorrow in the round-up:
      “Gasly awarded the Trintignant Memorial Trophy. The prize is named in honour of France’s first world champion and awarded to the Republique’s driver who achieves the best result in the F1 world championship.”
      To be followed by:
      “Verstappen awarded the Verstappen Trophy. The prize is named in honour of the Netherlands’ first world champion and awarded to the Kingdom’s driver who achieves the best result in the F1 world championship.”

      PS I’m having a go at the choice to put this as the headline article of this international motorsport site rather than Hamilton.

      1. France actually has an equivalent organisation to the Commonwealth called La Francophonie. It includes Monaco, so the most recent winner of the Prost Cup would be Charles Leclerc. Weirdly, Albon would’ve won it in 2020 if Thailand’s membership hadn’t been suspended due to a coup. I’m sure his heart’s absolutely broken. 😂

    2. But did sir Hamilton went to the trouble of personally accepting the trophy or is he still sulking?

      1. Still proving to everyone what a toxic person you are on this site

        1. That’s not an answer.

      2. still sulking.

      3. y should he accept the manipulated result. there are enough blind max fans to applaude the farce.

  7. Racefans has omitted to report that Lewis also won his 15th consecutive Stevenage Cup.

    The trophy is awarded annually to the person that has the best season in F1 and that also grew up in Stevenage.

    In other news, Lando Norris and George Russell win their 3rd annual Bristol Cup and King’s Lynn Cup respectively.

    Finally, Kimi Räikkönen wins F1 Playboy of the Year for the 18th time…

    1. Excellent additions!

      Also, I am pleased to announce that I, myself, have actually won the Mezelf-trophy for the 28th time in succession.
      It is awarded to the person in my family that feels most strongly they would have had the best chance of winning the F1 title if indeed they would have been allowed to compete (chance to win is relative only to the other family members, highly inclusive of course).

    2. Norris is from Glastonbury by the way.

      1. Not according to Wikipedia.
        So maybe you should change it there is you have proof.

        Born in Bristol, Norris’ father Adam Norris, is a retired pensions manager,[3] one of Bristol’s wealthiest people and the 501st-richest in the country.[4] His mother Cisca (née Wauman) is from the Flanders region of Belgium.[5]

        1. My bad on that one. They moved to Glastonbury later. Bristol is closer to my hometown so even better.

  8. A whole lot of deck chair re-arranging going on on the titanic.

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