Verstappen wins in Abu Dhabi as Vettel ends F1 career with points

Max Verstappen won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix while teammate Sergio Perez failed to take second in the championship.

While Verstappen would lead almost from start to finish, Red Bull would be unable to make it a 1-2 in the championship as a two-stop gamble didn’t pay off.

A number of changes were to be made following this Grand Prix, with several drivers set to move to other squads while, perhaps the biggest news of the day, four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel would start his last race.

But first, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Max Verstappen narrowly leading his teammate into the first corner before a fight between Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz saw the Brit cut the chicane.

Hamilton was forced to hand the position back, but very quickly pushed himself back past the Spaniard. Although excitement around the fight for second between Perez and Charles Leclerc was high, Red Bull charged ahead in the lead while Ferrari and Mercedes battled for third.

Hamilton reported a loss of engine power, his teammate George Russell overtaking him on lap nine while Vettel found himself battling both Alpine cars.

Perez pitted earlier than most thought, swapping his medium tyres for hards, but emerged in the middle of Vettel’s battle with Fernando Alonso. After Leclerc pitted on lap 22, Red Bull would retake their 1-2.

In his final race with Alpine, Alonso would be forced to retire his car with mechanical issues. After a season cursed by reliability, the two-time world champion now looks ahead to his new start at Silverstone, and has not been quiet about his happiness to leave Alpine F1 Team.

On lap 34, the race strategy heated back up again, Perez pitting for another set of hard tyres, a last-gasp chase being setup to clinch second in the title. Perez would begin to set fastest laps quickly.

Mick Schumacher and Nicholas Latifi, both leaving F1 after Abu Dhabi, tangled at turn five, an incident reminiscent of how last year’s controversial title showdown came to be. However, both continued without damage and no safety car was called.

Russell and Sainz followed the Mexican driver in, but first Perez had to overcome Hamilton. The seven-time world champion would defend with all his might, but would fall off the podium on lap 46. On lap 55, Hamilton would face a hydraulic issue, retiring from the race in the pits.

Despite his best efforts, Perez would not catch Leclerc, the Monegasque clinching second in the championship as Verstappen finished a dominant performance to win in Yas Marina.

Meanwhile, Vettel’s career would draw to a close, narrowly missing out on ninth place as Aston Martin could not snatch sixth in the championship from Alfa Romeo.

“A big day and a big thank you to all of the support. So many flags, so many smiling faces which has been very special, very nice.

“I’m sure that I’m going to miss it more than I understand right now.”

While the season is over, work for the teams is all but complete, as testing commences on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi before the mechanics settle down for their Christmas break.

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