Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifications: Perez propels his team leader to pole position!

A final session with a huge stake took place yesterday at the Yas Marina circuit.

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen start this final battle of the season tied at the perfect equal points. This session is therefore crucial before the ultimate round tomorrow, which will determine the 2021 drivers’ champion.

A1: The red flag does not disturb the established order.

Lewis Hamilton quickly takes control of this Q1. He seems comfortable and is not pushing his abilities.

Just behind, by five hundredths, Max Verstappen is more on the attack and pushing to the maximum to stay within his opponent’s time.

Shortly after mid Q1, Mick Schumacher moved the marker on the track that indicates the apex of the last turn. Right behind him, Lando Norris collided with it and pushed it onto the kerb.

The FIA deems their position dangerous and decides to end the session.

At the restart, the Ferraris switch to the red tires after their medium test at the beginning of this session.

At the bottom of the rankings, Haas, Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, and Williams are battling as usual to try to make it through to Q2.

The struggling drivers are Mazepin, Schumacher, Räikkönen, Russell, and Latifi.

For the last qualification of his career, the Finn didn’t shine and will start 18th.

Q2: Innovative strategy for Red Bull

We’re used to it now, the top teams Mercedes, Red Bull, AlphaTauri, and McLaren are trying to qualify on the medium tyre. The one that will allow them a longer first stint on track proves to be quite effective. The times are similar to those achieved on soft tyres in Q1.

Lewis Hamilton is the fastest in the first part. But Red Bull is doing better and the gap narrows to just four thousandths between the two men. Bottas is also very close, at six hundredths.

Tsunoda is in great shape, and proudly wears the colors of his AlphaTauri. In the timed lap exercise, the Japanese driver is showing more and more comfort towards the end of the season.

The red Ferrari tires also make an appearance, and it’s Carlos Sainz who puts his name at the top of the time sheet.

For the second part of Q2, all the drivers go out at the last moment and bicker while preparing their timed lap. As usual, a traffic jam has occurred.

The Mercedes cars are heading back out to attack the stopwatch on medium tires, while all the others, including the Red Bull, have opted for the red tires.

Lewis Hamilton temporarily leads Sainz’s time, but Perez improves upon this benchmark and will therefore start the race on red tires. Verstappen follows suit, sets the fastest time, and opts for a different strategy compared to his opponent on Sunday.

The eliminated drivers are Alonso, Gasly, Stroll, Giovinazzi, and Vettel.

The two Aston Martin cars are still lacking pace, and the German driver complains about being blocked on his fast lap. Just like Alonso, who is losing time with Ricciardo ahead of him. This is likely costing him his place in Q3.

Q3: Perez, to take his leader to the pole position.

For this first part of Q3, Red Bull is playing the team game to the fullest. Perez sacrifices his first flying lap to give a tow to his leader. And it works. Max Verstappen takes the lead, with a six-tenths advantage over Hamilton. He also manages to secure the third position on his second flying lap.

Behind, the Ferraris are in front of the McLarens and Tsunoda will have to start all over again in the second part: his lap was canceled while he was qualifying just behind the top four men.

The Mercedes launch the second part of this Q3, and Hamilton manages on his own. He unleashes a maximum attack. We can see his car pushing the limits, and despite all his efforts, he falls short by three tenths of a second behind the Dutch driver. The Red Bull strategy worked wonders.

It is Norris who achieves the feat by clocking the third fastest time. He comes between Hamilton and Perez. He will be in the front row tomorrow to witness the “fight” of the year. But he also disrupts Red Bull’s strategy.

Behind, Bottas is showing disappointing performance in sixth place. He is far from being able to support his team leader.

At Ferrari, Carlos Sainz seems more comfortable and dominates his Monégasque teammate. They finish fifth and seventh respectively.

Final results

Updated Chronos thereafter.