The 2021 season of Formula 1 has come to an end. Max Verstappen has come out as the drivers’ champion this season, with Mercedes claiming their eighth consecutive constructors' championship. It has been a season full of incredible moments that I am sure many of us kept on the edge of our seats. The battle for the drivers' championship was not resolved until the last lap of the last Grand Prix of the year, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Many controversial decisions, many penalties, many strategies, but a team and a driver were the winners.

Mercedes did not disappoint. The German team managed to obtain its eighth consecutive constructors' title, thanks to all the engineers, mechanics and, of course, its two drivers; Valtteri Bottas and the seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton. Despite the fact that there were several times when Red Bull looked much stronger than the Germans, Mercedes held their heads high and they returned the following weekend stronger than ever. Their power unit was incredibly reliable this year, which is also a big highlight for this team. In this piece we will compare the performance in the race and in the qualifying session of its two drivers. We will analyse these statistics to truly know who was better.

• Qualifying session

Out of the 22 races that took place in 2021, Lewis Hamilton achieved a better qualifying position 17 times, while Valtteri Bottas managed to beat his teammate 5 times. The seven-time world champion managed to occupy pole position 7 times, while the Finn achieved it in 3 races. It should be noted that we are not counting Lewis Hamilton's position in the Brazilian Grand Prix since in qualifying he obtained the first position, but was later disqualified for a technical infraction on his rear wing. Similarly, Hamilton's average qualifying position was 2.1, and if we round, it would be 2nd. On the other hand, Bottas' average would be 3.7, that is, 4th place.

Race

Sunday's main race is where the points are awarded and that is where the result matters. Lewis Hamilton had a better race finish position on 18 occasions, while Bottas managed to beat Hamilton in only 4 Grands Prix. The Briton occupied the highest place of the podium in a total of 8 races, while Valtteri was victorious in only 1 race (Turkish Grand Prix). Lewis achieved a total of 17 podiums, Valtteri obtained a total of 10 podiums. The only DNF (did not finish) of Hamilton was during the Italian Grand Prix, in Monza, where a collision with his main rival, Max Verstappen, forced him to retire from that Grand Prix. On the other hand, Valtteri retired from the race on 4 occasions (Emilia Romagna, Monaco, Hungarian and Qatar Grand Prix). Hamilton's average finish position was 2.6, that is, 3rd place, while Bottas' was 4th. Finally, Lewis Hamilton finished the season in 2nd place, with a total of 387.5 points, while Valtteri Bottas took 3rd place with 226 points (161.5 points less than his teammate). The next chart is attached to facilitate understanding of the information.