Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner was ecstatic as Max Verstappen won the Formula 1 Driver's World Championship, thanks in part to Nicholas Latifi of Williams Racing. The title was decided at the final lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. However, without Latifi's incident, the story may have never received its final twist.
Verstappen was trailing to Lewis Hamilton in the final few laps of the race. It took a Latifi crash and the safety car that followed for Verstappen to catch up and eventually overtake Hamilton. Speaking after the race, Horner made sure to credit Latifi for his unintentional contribution (via The Guardian):
“That just about sums up this year, I think … I think I called it on the commentary, that it was going to need something from the racing Gods in the last 10 laps … you know, thank you, Nicholas Latifi, for that safety car.”
The incident sparked controversy at the end of the race, and that wasn't the only instance. At the start of the race, Verstappen himself was on the losing end of the FIA's decision. For Horner, however, it was important that the stewards allowed the cars to race.
Regardless of the controversial ending, Horner certainly felt Verstappen's win was deserved. While Red Bull ultimately lost the Formula 1 Constructor's Championship to Mercedes, Verstappen's victory will taste sweet for everyone at Red Bull. Meanwhile, Nicholas Latifi finished 17th in the Formula 1 driver's standings with seven points in total. According to The Mirror, Christian Horner also joked about Latifi's contribution to Verstappen's win, saying:
“He’ll be getting a lifetime supply of Red Bull for sure.”
Should he get that lifetime supply, Latifi will definitely love the taste of Max Verstappen's victory as much as Verstappen himself.
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