Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: The Editorial Team’s Top / Flop

The TOP 3

1. Verstappen perfect from start to finish

After securing the third pole position of his career on Saturday, Max Verstappen delivered the perfect race the next day by winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The Dutchman got off to a good start and was not caught out by Bottas in the first lap. Immediately creating a gap with the Finn, the Red Bull driver then managed the only race incident well, which was the safety car to remove Perez’s car.

He then made a perfect restart, surprising Bottas and securing his lead by managing a gap that never dropped below three seconds for the remainder of the race.

Verstappen could have even achieved the Grand Slam, but Ricciardo came and took away the fastest lap in the race on the last lap, the only hitch in an otherwise clinical weekend.

No matter, Mad Max sets the date for the 2021 season and Hamilton and Mercedes will once again have to be wary of the threat he poses.

2. McLaren wins the battle for third place

It was one of the major stakes of this last race of the season: who, between Racing Point and McLaren, would manage to finish best of the rest behind the untouchable Red Bull and Mercedes?

Racing Point was largely favored with a 10-point lead, but the mechanics having betrayed their leader Sergio Perez, the latter was forced to start from the back of the grid.

And the situation wasn’t going to improve for the Mexican, “winner of his first Grand Prix” the previous week. Indeed, as he was making his way back and was on the right tire strategy, the Mercedes engine of the Racing Point let him down again for the second time in three Grand Prix races. Infuriating for what was his last race with the Pink Panthers!

And even if Lance Stroll created an illusion at the beginning of the race, the Canadian’s pace wasn’t high enough to keep up with that of the McLarens and the Renaults.

On the contrary, and despite an investigation into a possible mistake by Sainz entering the pits, McLaren delivered a solid race that saw Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz finish 5th and 6th, respectively.

This result allows the Woking firm to clinch the valuable 3rd place in the championship by 7 points from the future Aston Martin team. An early Christmas present!

3. Ricciardo, a successful farewell with Renault

Many drivers were competing in their last Grand Prix with their team at this 2020 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Daniel Ricciardo was among them, bidding farewell to Renault before moving on to McLaren next year.

The Australian was keen to leave on a positive note with the French manufacturer, with whom he is parting on very good terms, having contributed to the revival of the Yellows.

Starting only 12th after missing his qualifications, *Honey Badger* makes a good start by overtaking Leclerc and Ocon in the first laps while he was on hard tires, unlike his rivals.

Rare driver with Ferrari not to stop during the safety car, the Australian climbed to the 5th provisional position and maintained it with much more worn tires than his main competitors, notably the McLarens.

Having to observe his stop, the Perth native falls to 7th place and will remain there. And the cherry on the cake, he secures the fastest lap in the race during the final lap of the Grand Prix and concludes his collaboration with Renault in style.

BONUS. The French Hosts of Grand Prix

If, as usual, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was quite dull in terms of spectacle, we could still count on our French drivers to liven up the race a bit.

The battle of Pierre Gasly against Leclerc as well as the one between Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll in the final lap gave us our dose of spectacle with our two representatives in the points.

You can find here the race summary of Pierre Gasly. Similarly, click on this link to read the one concerning Esteban Ocon.

The FLOP 3

1. Racing Point loses big

If there are winners in this Grand Prix, there are inevitably losers. In this case, this Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will have cost Racing Point the third place in the constructors’ standings.

Favorite for obtaining the position of “Best of the Rest,” Lawrence Stroll’s team had already started their weekend poorly during free practice, having to change parts on Perez’s car. As a result, the Mexican driver was forced to start 19th.

In the race, he was on the right strategy and had begun his comeback when, once again, after the Bahrain Grand Prix, mechanical issues let him down, forcing him to retire in his last Grand Prix with the team.

Stroll, for his part, couldn’t keep up with the McLarens or even the Renaults and lost the 10th place in the final lap to Esteban Ocon, thus being overtaken by Gasly in the drivers’ championship for 10th place as well.

Infuriating.

2. Ferrari drank the cup to the dregs

The nightmare season for Scuderia lasted until the final Grand Prix! Nothing worked once again for the Reds this weekend, and the fatigue eventually overcame its drivers, who couldn’t stop being overtaken.

If Vettel was on the right strategy for once, the German world champion was limited by the capabilities of his car and only finished 14th. Leclerc, on the other hand, should have pitted when the safety car was deployed, but Ferrari’s gamble to keep him on the track didn’t pay off.

He even fought for several laps to overtake George Russell’s Williams. It was high time for the season to end for the Italian firm, which hopes to start off on the right foot next year.

It will, however, be without Sebastian Vettel, who left after 6 seasons and a failure to secure the world title. Like Alain Prost and Fernando Alonso, the future Aston Martin driver exits through the back door and also hopes to bounce back with this change of team.

3. The show, once again a great absentee at Yas Marina

Some have called it the worst Grand Prix of the season and considering how great the 2020 season has been, it’s hard to say much better about it.

Indeed, this Yas Marina track has once again resulted in a race with too little excitement, and one wonders why the F1 World Championship still ends there (Money, money, money… as the band ABBA would say).

When a world championship concludes on this circuit, the interest is high because the suspense is at its peak in the last Grand Prix of the season. But too often, this Grand Prix has been lacking in spectacle, and the 2020 edition was no exception.

Fortunately, the Renault drivers, Charles Leclerc during his brief comeback, and Pierre Gasly were present to ensure a minimum of overtaking and battles.

Despite the usual beauty of the images during this Grand Prix at sunset, this Abu Dhabi round clearly stands out, especially alongside the unusual circuits visited this season.