Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes welcomed the FIA's admission of "human error" in their report into the events at last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The 2021 championship was decided in controversial fashion as now-former race director Michael Masi's unprecedented decisions during a late Safety Car period led to a last-lap showdown during which Max Verstappen passed Hamilton to claim his first title.
In their report published prior to the Bahrain GP, the FIA admitted Masi had made a "human error" by not following the normal Safety Car procedures, but also maintained he took the decisions he did in "good faith".
“We cannot go back, unfortunately, and change the past so I just look at what I can do now," Hamilton said in response.
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“I wasn’t expecting an apology and it’s not something I’ve focused on.
“We know that’s the way it is and that was probably not going to happen. But at least there is that transparency, and it’s been called a human error and that’s a positive step.”
That view was echoed by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who added: “Whether the report is weak or hard, it’s a good step forward in terms of governance.
“You can read it either way but for us, there are the words that say ‘human error’ and the acknowledgement of that is very important.
“Going on about Abu Dhabi doesn’t make my life any easier. The trophy is in someone else’s cabinet and the chapter is closed.”
Since last season's finale, new race management has been introduced incorporating a VAR-style remote race control, while the wording of the Safety Car regulations has been revised to avoid a repeat.
While some continue to believe Verstappen's championship is tainted by what happened in the final laps, the Dutchman insists he is a worthy champion.
"I proved that with the most wins, most pole and most laps led," he said.
"People forget that. They only look at Abu Dhabi apparently. We have more races than only Abu Dhabi in the season."
