With the 2020 Formula One season drawing to a close, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix provided us with an intense midfield battle and a break in the Mercedes chain, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen snatching pole position for the start of the 17th race of the season.
After causing a collision at the previous Sakhir Grand Prix, costing Red Bull a possible win, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was given a three-place grid penalty. Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Haas’ Kevin Magnussen were both required to start from the back of the grid for use of additional power unit elements. The two Mercedes were again putting in the laps ready for another first-row lockout but, within the final seconds, Verstappen set a 1:35:246 lap putting him on provisional pole, just thirty-five thousandths quicker than Bottas.
Lights out and Verstappen was able to almost immediately create a gap between himself and the two Mercedes, with Red Bull’s Alex Albon fighting the two McLaren’s who were racing to secure 3rd in the Constructors Championship. With a steadily growing gap, Bottas fell out of DRS range of Verstappen and, alongside teammate Lewis Hamilton, struggled to match the extraordinary pace of the Red Bull.
Loss of power for Perez on lap 10, which ultimately forced him to park up and retire, led to a Safety Car, allowing the leaders to pit without losing much time. Racing Point reported McLaren’s Carlos Sainz for driving too slowly in the pit lane, believing it had an effect of the position re-joining of their driver, Lance Stroll. The investigation, which occurred after the race, was concluded without any penalties for the McLaren driver, with Stroll stating, ‘it didn’t cost us much’.
Stroll, who locked up and reportedly had a traction problem throughout, struggled to fight with the midfield teams, ultimately leading to losing 3rd place for the Racing Point team in their last Constructors Championship before rebranding as Aston Martin. Perez stated he is ‘sad to leave the team in this way’ but believes the ‘future is looking bright’ for the team, adding he still hopes for a chance of a 2021 seat.
Red Bull’s Alex Albon came within 1.7 seconds of Hamilton in the final lap of the race but was unable to secure his 3rdpodium for the team. In after race interviews, he noted it ‘was a good weekend for me’ but still doesn’t know what the future holds for him. His boss, Christian Horner stated that Albon’s performance gives him a ‘complete set of information to analyse’ and decide on who will be Verstappen’s teammate for 2021.
However, following comments by Sky Sports reporter Ted Kravitz, it is rumoured across social media that Red Bull will be giving Albon’s seat to Perez, with Albon becoming their reserve driver for the following season. Could this be true? It is set to be announced officially in the coming weeks.
Renault, who were in the top 3 in FP3 on Saturday, claimed the fastest lap of the race but found themselves further down the midfield competition, with Ricciardo in 7th and Ocon 9th, with a last minute overtake on Lance Stroll giving the team an extra point. Ricciardo, who scored his 11th consecutive points, said the race was ‘a nice little send-off’ and is happy to be ‘walking into a team that is 3rd’(McLaren) for the 2021 season.
Verstappen claimed his victory and took the chequered flag at an astonishing 15 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas (P2) and Lewis Hamilton (P3). Mercedes finished a whopping 254 points ahead of their biggest competition, Red Bull, and celebrated by doing donuts on the starting grid before their podium.
Haas’ Kevin Magnussen joined in doing donuts on his cool down lap, celebrating his Formula One career. The danish driver ‘misses being in a place where he can focus on a championship and go for the wins’, adding that a return to Formula One will not be likely.
It was Sebastian Vettel’s last race with Ferrari, and with a disappointing P14, he will definitely be looking forward to driving the Aston Martin and hopefully, be back fighting for the podium places! Following his last lap, the German driver sang the Italian National Anthem over the radio, showing his appreciation and love for the team.
Pierre Gasly, who has had a brilliant year for Alpha Tauri, believes the team is ‘taking a step forward to match McLaren’ and fight, more regularly, for the top spots. His teammate, Daniil Kvyat, is yet to be confirmed for the next season, and with plenty of drivers waiting, it is still unknown whether he will he be on the grid in 2021.
So, with new and old talent set for the 2021 grid, who will be the main competitors for the championship title? We’ll get our first insight at Albert Park on March 19th!
Grid Driven 