There's a first time, or even a 102nd time, for everything as Lewis Hamilton won the inaugural Qatar Grand Prix uncontested from pole position Sunday for his 102nd victory.
Hamilton, who also started P1 for the 102nd time, led from flag to flag to narrow the gap on championship leader Max Verstappen, who had to settle for second place.
Eight points are all that now separate Hamilton from Verstappen and only two races remain on the calendar as the Mercedes driver seeks an unprecedented eighth Formula One title.
No need to add any chili powder as there’s more than enough spicy drama to go around.
Tensions were still boiling over from last weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix as Mercedes continued to challenge the FIA's decision not to penalize Red Bull and Verstappen for appearing to run Hamilton off the track during the race.
That carried over into Saturday's qualifying session when Pierre Gasly sustained a punctured tire and Verstappen ignored the subsequent double yellow flags. Verstappen didn't escape unscathed this time and was dinged five spots on the starting grid. Hamilton's Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas also received a three-spot penalty.
Tensions seemed to have simmered during Sunday's race — you know, the thing everyone actually cares about — but they'll begin bubbling again soon enough with the title within reach.
Two races left. Just 8 points between @Max33Verstappen and @LewisHamilton.
Who's taking home the 2021 @F1 championship? #F1 pic.twitter.com/8qJA2xgesm— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 21, 2021
Hamilton takes a stand
Hamilton should be applauded for using his platform to speak out on human rights issues plaguing countries that host F1 races.
"I just feel that if we are coming to these places, we need to be raising the profile of the situation," Hamilton told the Associated Press. "I think we can still bring a spotlight to it and create that scrutiny and that pressure that could hopefully create change."
Hamilton continued to show his support for the LGBTQ+ community by sporting a rainbow-coloured helmet during the race.
"Damage limitation"
Although Hamilton closed the gap in the drivers' standings, Red Bull did the same on the constructors' side pulling within five points of Mercedes for the lead.
With Hamilton on pole position and sprinting away, it was all about "damage limitation," as Verstappen said on his radio during the race, having to start P7 after incurring the aforementioned grid penalty.
The Dutch driver made a brilliant move out of the starting blocks to make up three spots right off the bat and breezed by Gasly and Fernando Alonso on consecutive laps early on to quickly restore order.
Meanwhile, Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez, who missed the cut for Q3 Saturday and started P11, also had a great run out of the gate to gain ground and finished fourth.
As Verstappen was moving up at the start, Bottas was spinning in the opposite direction and actually lost five more places to fall into 11th on the opening lap.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff encouraged Bottas on the radio to "get these cars" and make some Hamilton-esque aggressive attacks even though that's not the style for the Finnish driver.
Misery loves company though and Bottas was forced to call it a day with less than 10 laps remaining due to a punctured tire.
VB: "Just a normal day for me in the office." https://t.co/IaHWZFCt67
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) November 21, 2021
Vintage Fernando
It had been 104 races since Fernando Alonso finished on the podium, back at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2014, and the two-time world champion wasn't intent on making it 105.
The Spanish driver was only on a one-stop pit strategy and was able to avoid critical tire damage that plagued others to bring home P3.
It was the kind of drive we haven't seen from Alonso since, well, 2014 in Hungary when he was still racing for Ferrari. That was seven years and two teams ago; points leader Verstappen hadn't even made his F1 debut yet.
Alonso's teammate Esteban Ocon also hung on for fifth as Alpine was able to finally pull away from AlphaTauri in the constructors' standings after being deadlocked in fifth place during the past two races. Alpine earned 25 points while AlphaTauri ended up empty-handed.
It's ironic the driver who benefited the most from the grid penalties was the one who caused it all. Gasly ended up starting on the front row in P2 right next to Hamilton after Verstappen and Bottas were sent back.
Gasly was unable to capitalize on the golden opportunity as his team was firm on its two-pit strategy and had the French driver box for his second stop early. It backfired with others opting just for the one pit stop and resulted in a P11 finish for Gasly. AlphaTauri teammate Yuki Tsunoda also finished outside of the points in 13th place.
Tire trouble
Although Alonso was able to stretch it, a few other drivers weren't so lucky with their tire management and a flurry of failures late in the race.
McLaren's Lando Norris was the first in a chain reaction to pit with eight laps remaining followed by both Williams cars of George Russell and Nicholas Latifi as their front left tires shredded. Russell was at least able to make it back to the pits while the Canadian driver Latifi was forced to pull off the track and park it.
LAP 54/57
Tyre woe for several drivers as Russell, Norris and Latifi all reports problems
A crazy finish to this one with three laps to go in Qatar#QatarGP#F1 pic.twitter.com/JZTK13Ik7k— Formula 1 (@F1) November 21, 2021
Small success for Stroll
Canadian driver Lance Stroll earned his best finish so far this year in P6 in what has been a disappointing season.
Expectations were high as Racing Point switched to Aston Martin and brought in veteran driver Sebastian Vettel. The pair have only netted one podium between them — Vettel finished second at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix back in June.
Aston Martin is still firmly in seventh in the constructors' standings well behind the midpack teams and just ahead of the backmarkers.
Up Next
The series is off to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and the penultimate race of the season in a fortnight on Dec. 5.
