Max Verstappen has revealed how intense cramp nearly stopped him taking the F1 world title

Speaking in an interview with The Guardian newspaper, Red Bull ace Max Verstappen has revealed in detail how much pain he was suffering on the final lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with cramp, and has said he could not have done even one more lap the way he was feeling.

The final tour of the Yas Marina Circuit at the end of the 2021 Formula 1 campaign will likely never be forgotten, such was the drama, controversy and emotional outpouring that accompanied the final minute and a half of racing action.

Michael Masi, infamously, called in the Safety Car to trigger one final flying lap and, on far fresher tyres, Verstappen nicked the race win, and championship title, away from Lewis Hamilton who had been serene out in front for the duration of the Grand Prix.

Anything but serene, though, was the scene in the Red Bull cockpit by the sounds of things with Max going into real detail into how much pain he was in during the final lap, as he had to fight through a serious dose of cramp in his leg:

“If you go back over the data you will not see a very smooth throttle input. I was screaming on the radio [after he had won] but the whole lap my foot was going like that,” he said.

“It was completely done. One more lap and I couldn’t have finished the race like that. The stress levels were so high in the final lap that probably your body reacts to that. But you cannot give up.

“I was like: ‘I need to overtake him [Hamilton]. There’s only one option here. I’m not going to finish second.’

“I tried to be really on it with the restart. It was all working well until I crossed the line and started to feel cramp in my leg. It’s one of the most painful things that can happen because you’re going full throttle for a long time.

“You feel the