Yas Marina Circuit is ready to host the 21st and final round of the 2019 Formula 1® season, the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2019.
This year marks 10 years since the inaugural race back in 2009. In that time, drivers have completed 550 race laps or 30,250km around the track.
The first race was won by Sebastian Vettel who has 53 victories in F1®, 3 of which have come in Abu Dhabi.
In total, 5 different drivers have won at Yas Marina Circuit (Vettel, Hamilton, Raikkonen, Rosberg, Bottas), with Lewis Hamilton the most successful with 4. The Briton’s victory in 2014 not only gave him his 2nd F1® championship but also saw him score 50 points, the highest total a driver has scored at a single race.
3 Drivers’ world champions have been crowned in Abu Dhabi (Vettel 2010, Hamilton 2014 and Nico Rosberg 2016) although still 0 Constructors’ Championships have been decided.
Red Bull (3) and Mercedes (5) have won 8 of 10 races at Yas Marina Circuit with McLaren and Lotus managing 1 each. Renault has won 4 times as an engine supplier.
This weekend, 2 drivers will compete in possibly their final F1® race. Robert Kubica will start his 97th race and first in Abu Dhabi since 2010 and Nico Hulkenberg is set for his 179th Grand Prix entry, although he has failed to start twice.
Red Bull’s junior team Toro Rosso will also compete under that name for the final time as it is set to become Alpha Tauri in 2020. Since its creation in 2006, the team has 1 win and pole (Monza 2008), 3 podiums including 2 this year, and 497 points having run a total of 14 drivers.
Mercedes is likely to achieve its second highest points total as a team with 701 points after 20 races but can’t reach the 765 it achieved in 2016.
Victory for Lewis Hamilton would give him his highest single season points total as he currently has 387 points, 21 short of his 2017 tally of 408.
Charles Leclerc currently has 7 poles to his name in 2019 and needs one more to match Michael Schumacher’s 8 in 2004, albeit still three short of the German’s Ferrari record of 11 in 2001, or Vettel’s overall record of 15 in 2011
Max Verstappen can also score his highest championship position of 3rd for Red Bull after scoring Honda’s first 3 wins in F1® since 2006, their most in a single year since winning 5 times with McLaren in 1992.
After all that though it comes down to this, 20 drivers, including 8 race winners and 3 world champions, are ready to take on 55 laps around Yas Marina Circuit in front of up to 60,000 fans as F1® 2019 draws to a close at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
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