Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso tussled through the concluding race of the 2023 season, as the old rivals had an extremely intense DRS battle. Hamilton had come onto the main straight near the pit exit as Alonso came out of it, but complained when the Spaniard lifted his foot to let Hamilton by. As the Spaniard allowed the 7x Champion to pass him, he was able to get DRS into the next straight, giving him the advantage.

Former Red Bull title contender and 9-time race winner Mark Webber had harsh words about the incident, claiming it was a dangerous game by the two. The Australian claimed the situation was personal, influenced by the former teammates’ rivalry that has spanned 14 years. Webber said Alonso tried to “manipulate” the DRS point intentionally, looking in his mirrors to do so.

This is a bit personal. We know that these two have a lot of history. Fernando was trying to manipulate the DRS point, obviously, they’re into the activation onto this long back straight. That could have got quite embarrassing, but also, [it was] a bit dangerous.

Mark Webber said, as reported by planetf1

Hamilton and Alonso have competed alongside each other for the past 14 years, both drivers contending for the title multiple times. After their violent year as teammates in 2007 where both drivers lost the Championship by one point, the two have gained respect for one another over time, being the oldest athletes on the grid.

Martin Brundle deems Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso’s DRS squabble to be “sketchy”

Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso had a very risky battle throughout the Abu Dhabi GP, which was won by the Spaniard. Lewis Hamilton meanwhile finished ninth behind Yuki Tsunoda, whom he attempted to overtake on the last lap, but could not appropriately control the car to do so. The battle between Alonso and Hamilton was extremely intense, with the 7x World Champion remarking about the incident on the radio.

Alonso exited the pits to lift the car and let Hamilton by, aiming to get DRS onto the next straight after turn 5. Hamilton found this to be unfair, but Alonso was set free by the stewards and was the victor in the fight of the two multiple world champions. Sky Sports F1 commentator Martin Brundle was taken aback by the battle between the two most experienced drivers on the grid. Brundle claimed the incident was strange, saying “it all looked sketchy” to him.

There was a strange incident when Fernando Alonso emerged from the pits and appeared to heavily brake test Lewis, which caught him off guard. Fernando was hoping to let Lewis through the DRS detection point first ready for the long straights, but it all looked rather sketchy, to say the least.

Martin Brundle himself is an accomplished former F1 driver, having driven alongside Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna at various points in his racing career. The British commentator managed nine podiums in F1 before pursuing Formula One coverage and commentary following his departure from racing.

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