The championship title was decided on the final lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which was almost fitting in a season full of drama and controversy.
The 1974 finale level was the only time in the 71-year history of the sport that points were entered. It was a winner-take-all.
The race did not disappoint after all the hype. Both title contender had their own share of luck on the first lap. Verstappen won the race and the title.
Here is how it ended.
Hamilton made a better start than Verstappen, but the controversy began at Turn 6.
It was inevitable to see drama from the lights out. The biggest event of the lap was when Hamilton jumped ahead of his title rival at Turn 6.
Verstappen tried to go up the inside of Hamilton. His move was late but he was able to make the corner and stay on the track. Hamilton was forced wide and cut the corner at the chicane before taking the lead.
Verstappen said over the radio that he had to give that back, but the stewards didn't notice until two laps later.
Lewis Hamilton jumped ahead of Max Verstappen.
The stewards confirmed that there was no need for an investigation into the Lap 1 incident.
Verstappen gained an advantage by forcing Hamilton off, which Hamilton neutralised by cutting the corner, according to the stewards' review.
Red Bull was confused. They said it was a hard race and that Verstappen made the corner. Hamilton's lead was increasing.
Verstappen was forced into early change after struggling with his soft tyres.
He had gone out on the softs, but by Lap 9 he was struggling with rear tire degradation. He came out behind Lando in sixth after waiting until Lap 13 to change to hards.
If he was to catch up with Hamilton, Red Bull had to hope the compounds had better pace.
Hamilton was brought into the pit by Mercedes.
Mercedes decided to cover off their rival by bringing Hamilton in. He rejoined behind Perez, but still behind Verstappen.
Hamilton set a new fastest lap when Carlos Sainz was the only driver in the title race.
The clean racing from Hamilton allowed him to extend his gap with Verstappen to 8.0s, while his rival was struggling to pass the Ferrari.
Verstappen overtook Sainz at Turn 6 and sat behind his rival.
The Red Bull put up a fight for Perez as Hamilton closed in on him.
Knowing that Verstappen needed to make up time, Perez put up a great defence against the seven-time world champion. Hamilton passed him out of Turn 5 and into Turn 6 and Perez took the lead out of Turn 7.
Verstappen was 1.2s behind when Hamilton passed the Red Bull.
Verstappen said thatCheco is a legend.
After every lap, the championship appeared to slip away from Verstappen, despite the good work from his teammate.
The yellow flag did not change much as Hamilton continued to storm away from his rival after Kimi Raikkonen stopped on Lap 26.
Lewis Hamilton was the leader for most of the race.
Antonio Giovinazzi's car stopped on the track at the high-speed Turn 9 and a Virtual Safety Car was deployed.
Verstappen was given an opportunity to change to another set of hard tyres after the VSC, which requires drivers to drive at a slower speed to allow marshals to carry out safety work.
Hamilton stayed put because Mercedes said it was too high for him to pit. Verstappen would have taken the lead if he had pitted.
The decision left Hamilton with more tires than Verstappen for the last 20 laps of the race.
Verstappen's chance of winning the title was almost certain to be lost, with Hamilton maintaining his pace and the gap between them.
It wasn't working for the Dutch. Hamilton had the pace advantage and his tires were holding up.
Nicholas Latifi crashed out just as Verstappen seemed lost.
A safety car was needed to clear the damage after the Williams driver ran wide at Turn 15 and hit the wall under the hotel.
Red Bull needed this stroke of luck to work. The safety car deployment would reduce the gap between the title contender and the one that was not.
With the safety car deployed, Hamilton was unable to pit, leaving him with no choice but to use his old tires.
"That's unbelievable, man," Hamilton said over his radio.
Verstappen was brought in to switch to fresh, soft tyres to end the race.
Mercedes might have regretted not taking the chance to pit earlier in the race.
This is where it got controversial again.
The initial message from race control said that cars would not be allowed to overtake the safety cars.
Verstappen had to pass five cars to get to Hamilton. It seemed like another blow to Red Bull.
Red Bull were angry. The title rivals were still in the lead, but the safety car was out.
The race director was asked by the Red Bull boss why they weren't getting the cars out of the way. We only need one lap.
Massi seemed to fall under the pressure, allowing the five cars to be let through and bringing Verstappen right up behind his rival.
It was a straight fight until the end. A one-lap race. Two drivers are fighting for the title this season.
Max Verstappen crossed the line ahead of the Mercedes.
Verstappen crossed the line first after making his move into Turn 5 to win the race and the title. Hamilton tried to pass Red Bull on his older tires, but they wouldn't stick.
Verstappen screamed down his radio, "Oh my God, oh my God" as he crossed the line.
Sainz was the winner of the final podium spot.
The race is over.
This was a race full of controversy that seems to reflect the entire F1 season.
Mercedes were angry as Verstappen and Red Bull celebrated. Wolff was yelling at Masi on the radio.
"Michael!" Michael! Wolff said that the results should count from the lap before the Safety Car came in.
Masi said, "Toto". This is a race.
The result was later rejected by the FIA after Mercedes submitted a protest.
Verstappen was overjoyed at his first title.
It's unbelievable. He said it was insane. I finally have a bit of luck. I want to thank Checo for driving his heart out today.
I think my team knows they love them. I hope I can stay with them for the rest of my life.
This is unbelievable. I started racing with my dad. We dreamed of becoming a world champion.
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