Preview | Will Verstappen beat Bottas to 2nd place in the F1 World Championship?
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The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is on the Formula 1 calendar for the 12th time and has grown over the years into a fitting finale to the F1 season. Hermann Tilke's circuit may not be a masterpiece, but it normally makes for a fun race. You can read what we can expect from the 2020 edition in the GPblog preview.
Yas Marina Circuit
The Yas Marina Circuit opened in October 2009, making it the second circuit built in the Middle East after the Bahrain track. This circuit was also designed by Hermann Tilke. While Bahrain has some fascinating turns, this isn't the case in Abu Dhabi.
The circuit is almost flat and with many right-angled corners, the fun factor for the drivers is reduced. Sector three is still interesting, but you also see many similar corners there. The combination of corners and straights has been good for Mercedes over the years, who have won the last six Grands Prix here.
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History in Abu Dhabi
The first race was held at the Abu Dhabi circuit in 2009 when Formula 1 arrives in the Middle East for the final part of the F1 season. Jenson Button had already been crowned World Champion and Brawn GP had already secured the Constructors' Championship. However, the Abu Dhabi race was 1-2 for Red Bull Racing, which set a marker down for the 2010 season.
In 2010, Abu Dhabi was the final chapter of an exciting Formula 1 season. Fernando Alonso comes to the track as the big favourite, but with Ferrari only eyeing closest rival Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel took the title. An exciting race in year two, although most of it is due to the title battle and not necessarily due to the action on the track.
That remains a recurring theme over the years. With Kimi Raikkonen, we see a surprising winner for Lotus in 2012, but in general, the driver who starts from pole wins. In fact, since 2015, every driver who won the race was also the one who had been fastest on Saturday.
Read more about the history of Abu Dhabi in Formula 1 here
Weather forecast
Regarding the weather, the drivers don't have to worry. During the day it's expected to be between 25 and 26 degrees celsius and as usual, no rain is expected in the Middle East. The race will, of course, be held local time in the evening, but it will not dip below 20 degrees even at night in Abu Dhabi.
Prediction for the Abu Dhabi GP
At the time of writing, it is unclear whether Lewis Hamilton will compete in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but the Bahrain Grand Prix has shown that a replacement like George Russell can put the car in the same spot. In other words, if Mercedes don't provide more comedy errors with pit stops, a Mercedes wins the Abu Dhabi GP.
For Max Verstappen, only the duel with Valtteri Bottas is still interesting. The Red Bull driver can catch Bottas in the Championship. If Bottas continues the form of the last few weeks, closing the 16 point gap isn't unrealistic. Besides, we also look forward to the midfield duel, where Racing Point, McLaren and Renault will fight their last battle for the coveted P3 with the constructors. After last weekend's double podium, Racing Point have a 10 point lead over fourth-placed McLaren, with Renault a further 12 points behind that.
Timetable for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix [UK times]
Friday
First free practice: 9:00 - 10:30
Second free practice: 13:00 - 14:30
Saturday
Third free practice: 10:00 - 11:00
Qualifying: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Sunday
Race: 13:10 - 15:10
This article was written and originally published by Tim on the Dutch edition of GPblog.com.