Google+ Jack Leslie F1: 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Weekend Report

27 November 2015

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Weekend Report

The Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi hosted the 19th and final round of the 2015 Formula 1 season.
© Octane Photographic
It was the seventh Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in F1 history and the third race of the year to take place under floodlights.

Unlike 2014's conclusion, both titles had already been wrapped up prior to Formula 1's trip to the glamorous Yas Marina Circuit, with Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton hoping to end another incredible season on a high.

FP1
It was Hamilton who set the pace in first practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The 90-minute session took place in bright sunshine, offering teams little running in representative race conditions.
© Octane Photographic

Mercedes finished another practice session in first and second, with Hamilton putting in a 1:43.754. Nico Rosberg was one tenth further back, with Kimi Raikkonen proving to be their nearest challenger. 

However, the Ferrari driver was still six tenths adrift in third, ahead of Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat. Sebastian Vettel was fifth, with Daniel Ricciardo in seventh, being split by the Force India duo of Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez.

Due to the unusual conditions, many teams used FP1 as a test session for 2016 parts. Pastor Maldonado was ninth for Lotus, with Jolyon Palmer replacing Romain Grosjean. He finished 18th due to a water leak and a spin. Felipe Massa completed the top 10, just beating team-mate Valtteri Bottas.

FP2
As the sun disappeared and night-time set in, second practice took place in Abu Dhabi. Rosberg was fastest for Mercedes, finishing one tenth clear of his Mercedes team-mate.
© Octane Photographic

Practice two saw the first appearance of the super-soft tyre, as drivers completed qualifying simulations. Rosberg's 1:42.899 was good enough for first place, with Hamilton in second and Perez - who suffered a brake issue - third.

Ricciardo was fourth, with Kvyat splitting the two Ferraris of Vettel and Raikkonen in sixth. Hulkenberg ended the session in eighth, ahead of Fernando Alonso, who was an encouraging ninth for McLaren.

Maldonado completed the top 10, with the Williams duo of Bottas and Massa next up. Carlos Sainz Jr was just behind his team-mate Max Verstappen in 14th despite a late mechanical failure. Romain Grosjean was 15th, driving in his final weekend for Lotus.

FP3
Rosberg remained at the top of the timesheets in third and final practice at the Yas Marina Circuit, finishing just under three tenths ahead of his team-mate Hamilton.
© Octane Photographic

The German driver set the pace under the bright sunshine in Abu Dhabi, after the qualifying simulations on the super-soft tyre, with a 1:41.856. Hamilton was second, despite a mid-session spin, and Vettel was just behind in third.

Perez proved Force India's strong short run pace by finishing fourth in FP3, ahead of Raikkonen, Ricciardo and Hulkenberg. Massa, Bottas and Sainz Jr completed the top 10.

Jenson Button was an encouraging 11th, just ahead of Maldonado, Felipe Nasr and Verstappen. Kvyat failed to set a time after an electrical issue and managed just two laps.

Qualifying
Rosberg claimed pole position in Abu Dhabi, setting the pace in qualifying for the sixth consecutive race weekend. 
© Octane Photographic

The German put in a 1:40.237 on his second attempt to finish Q3 in first place, beating Mercedes team-mate Hamilton by almost four tenths of a second. Raikkonen and Perez were third and fourth.

Ricciardo, Bottas and Hulkenberg were next up, with Force India showing impressive qualifying pace. Massa, Kvyat and Sainz Jr rounded out the top 10 in the final segment of qualifying.  

Verstappen was the first driver in the Q2 drop-zone, dropping to 11th in the final seconds of the 15-minute session. Button failed to improve and had to settle for 12th. 

Maldonado and Nasr made up time but failed to move up the order, while Grosjean suffered a gearbox issue with his Lotus and pulled off track, failing to put in a time.

There was a surprise result in Q1, with Vettel being eliminated after backing off on his final lap. Ferrari thought his lap on the soft tyre would be enough, but he was demoted by Button when the McLaren driver improved his time.

The Englishman's team-mate Alonso also found himself in the drop-zone following a late puncture. Marcus Ericsson and the Manor duo of Stevens and Merhi completed the result.

The Race
With a mixed up grid and pressure off the Mercedes driver's shoulders, we were all set for a thrilling finale of the 2015 F1 season. Rosberg lined up on pole position, with Hamilton alongside him.

The revs rose, the lights went out and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix got underway. Off the line, Rosberg had a strong start to lead into Turn 1. Hamilton was slow away but held off Raikkonen, while at the back of the field Alonso and Maldonado collided.
© Octane Photographic

Sainz Jr and Kvyat went into battle at Turn 5, with Massa joining the party on the run down the back straight. There was some frantic action in the midfield and positions changed constantly through the opening tour of the Yas Marina Circuit.

At the end of lap one, Rosberg had a 1.4 second lead, while Vettel had moved up to 12th place and Alonso pitted for a new nose and to replace a puncture. Bottas dropped to 10th place but quickly latched onto the rear wing of Kvyat, attempting a move around the outside at the 11th corner.

Massa displaced Sainz Jr for seventh at the same turn on the next lap, while Bottas went up the inside of Kvyat's Red Bull but ran wide and ruined his hard work. By the fifth lap, Rosberg's advantage had stabilised at just under two seconds, as things started to settle down.

Ricciardo attempted to pass Hulkenberg into Turn 9 but lost out on the next straight. However, he was late on the brakes and made the move for fifth place stick. Vettel displaced Verstappen for 11th with the help of DRS, while the first round of pit stops kicked off.

Perez, Ricciardo and Massa all stopped for new tyres at the end of lap six, reacting to Kvyat's trip to pit lane. Hulkenberg and Sainz Jr followed them in on the following tour, while Alonso was given a drive-through penalty for causing a collision on the first lap.
© Octane Photographic

Bottas stopped at the end of the eighth tour but he was released as Button passed him, with the two making light contact. The Williams driver damaged his front wing and was forced to stop again for repairs.

Rosberg dived into the pit lane at the end of lap nine. The Mercedes driver had opened up a 4.7 second lead over Hamilton, who stayed out. He was followed in by Raikkonen. Hamilton stopped on the next tour, with his team-mate taking back the lead.

The three-time champion emerged behind Vettel but he passed the Ferrari driver on lap 14 into Turn 8. Ericsson started on the soft tyre and pitted at the end of lap 15, after losing several places. Raikkonen was all over the back of Vettel and he easily moved up to third on lap 16.

Hamilton started to catch Rosberg and the gap was just 3.8 seconds by lap 23, just as Vettel and Grosjean completed their first pit stops. Hulkenberg changed tyres for the second time at the end of the following tour. Further back Button and Grosjean battled over 10th.

Ricciardo, Massa and Nasr all pitted at the end of the 26th tour. Hamilton continued to close on Rosberg and the difference between the two was cut down to just 1.7 seconds, as the leader struggled with graining. Vettel was faster than both Mercedes cars at this mid-way stage of the race, 38 seconds off first place.

It appeared Hamilton had entered the dirty air from Rosberg's car, with the gap remaining around the 1.3 seconds mark before the leader pitted for the second time at the end of lap 31. Hamilton looked to be trying something different and he stayed out.
© Octane Photographic

Vettel pitted at the end of lap 40 for the super-soft Pirelli compound, emerging in sixth place, behind his former team-mate Ricciardo. Hamilton waited until the end of lap 41 to pit but he went onto a new set of the prime tyre, despite others going onto the super-soft.

Grosjean stopped for the final time on the 44th tour. Meanwhile there were some aggressive but brave overtakes from Button and Verstappen, both passing Nasr within the space of just a few laps at the 11th and seventh corners respectively.

The two then battled over 12th position but the Toro Rosso went off at the exit of Turn 9 to do so. He was handed a five-second time penalty but it made no difference to his result. Massa passed Kvyat for eighth after a late move. At the front, Hamilton had cut Rosberg's advantage down to 6.8 seconds with six laps remaining.

However, traffic for the 2015 world champion helped Rosberg extend his lead in the final laps, claiming victory at the final round of the season. It was his sixth win of the season and first ever hat-trick of victories. Hamilton was second and Raikkonen was third.

Vettel put in a good recovery drive to finish fourth, ahead of Perez, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Massa and Grosjean. Kvyat completed the top 10 for Red Bull. Sainz Jr, Button, Bottas, Ericsson and Nasr were next up. Verstappen, Alonso, Stevens and Merhi were the final drivers classified. 

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