The 2021 Formula 1 World Championship will go down as one of the best in the history of the sport.
Sadly, the conclusion of the final race in Abu Dhabi had left multiple fans, both new and old, confused and frustrated, leaving a bad taste on what was otherwise a fantastic season.
Max Verstappen came up the winner, where in hindsight he deserved the title given his performances across the 23 race season.
However, whilst the sport has a new deserving champion, the sport also missed out on a piece of history as on lap 57 out of 58, Sir Lewis Hamilton was on course to become the first ever eight-time world champion.
That was until race director, Michael Massi, took a decision which had not been seen before in the sport.
This was the decision to only let some of the lapped cars pass the Safety Car when it was clear to do so, specifically only the cars that were in-between the two title rivals.
This left Hamilton helpless on the final lap as he struggled on older, harder tyres to keep Verstappen behind on the final lap, who was on newer softer tyres which gave Verstappen more grip.
As any sports fan can imagine, Hamilton was left distraught and felt hard done by the race direction.
Since the close of the season Hamilton has not publicly spoken about the incident although he is in constant contact with Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff.
Wolff gave an update on Hamilton before Christmas expressing that both the seven time champion and the Mercedes team were left disillusioned after the decision made during the closing procedure of the Safety Car.
He also stressed the possibility that Hamilton could simply walk away from the sport.
Wolff has once again given an update on Hamilton after speaking with Austrian publication Kronen Zeitung, stating:
"I really hope we'll see him again,
"He is the most important part of our sport. It would be an indictment for the whole of Formula 1 if the best driver decides to quit because of outrageous decisions.
"No matter what hurdle he faced, he has known all his life that he has to speak on the racetrack,
"But it is incredibly difficult for him until he has found a way between understanding right and wrong. It just takes time.
"We draw our conclusions from this and want to give the right answers on the track. That will be difficult enough with the new regulations."
Hamilton is set to make a decision based on an investigation by the FIA looking into the decision-making process which dramatically changed the outcome of a race.
However, the FIA have stated that the report would be published in February, where final decisions will be made at the season opening weekend in Bahrain on the 18th March.
This means Hamilton needs to make a decision, whether he would continue before the FIA have made the changes.
Politics are once again set to be a talking point in Formula One in 2022. For the sake of the fans, this needs to be closed off as soon as possible.