Points we realized from the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

F1 Grand Prix, GP Italy, Autodromo Nazionale di Monza

Max Verstappen claimed his nineteenth victory of the year in dominant vogue, but powering him a shut fight raged for each and every put at the year-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. F1Technical’s senior author Balázs Szabó provides his race assessment.

Information – Max Verstappen introduced his dominant file-breaking 2023 F1 year by environment new documents. The Dutchman scored his 54th F1 victory which intended that he surpassed 4-time planet winner Sebastian Vettel and finds himself in P3 on the all-time checklist of F1 wins only powering Michael Schumacher (ninety one) and Lewis Hamilton (103).

Verstappen scored his nineteenth earn in 2023 which is a new all-time file for the most solitary-year wins. The next-optimum amount of wins in a solitary year also belongs to Verstappen just after he clinched fifteen victories previous 12 months. The former all-time file, which is now the 3rd-optimum amount of wins in a solitary 12 months belongs to Sebastian Vettel, who received thirteen races in 2013.

Verstappen grew to become the 1st driver in historical past to surpass one,000 laps led in a solitary year at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in which he clinched his eleventh hat-trick weekend (earn, pole place and quickest race lap).

Speediest pit prevent – Ferrari was not only quick on the observe at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but the Scuderia was very quick in the pit lane. The Scuderia carried out the quickest pit prevent at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, servicing Carlos Sainz’s SF23 in two.16s.

Owning exhibited some eye-catching performances in the pit lane in the next 50 percent of the 2023 F1 year and environment a new all-time file with a one.eighty-next pit prevent, McLaren had been speedy in Yas Marina. The Woking-centered outfit carried out the next-fastest tyre transform, servicing the two Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri’s auto in just two.22s.

Pink Bull and AlphaTauri had been the only two other groups to get down below the two.5s mark with the Milton Keynes- and Faenza-centered outfit finishing a two.27s and two.32s tyre transform.

Winless – Owning received a whole of 5 F1 races, Charles Leclerc finished the year in Abu Dhabi with out a solitary earn in 2023. His major rival from 2019 Lewis Hamilton unsuccessful to rating a solitary victory for only the next time in his extended F1 vocation just after ending down in P9 in Abu Dhabi. Irrespective of acquiring taken a whole of 5 wins in Abu Dhabi, the Yas Marina Circuit has not been a scene of achievements for the 7-time planet winner just after he was pressured to retire from the motion because of to complex difficulties previous 12 months.

Speediest lap – Max Verstappen not only received his nineteenth grand prix in Abu Dhabi, but he finished the quickest race lap with a time of 1m26.993s. The Dutchman established that time on Pirelli’s challenging compound and was just about 50 percent a next more rapidly than his crew-mate Sergio Perez, who posted the next-quickest lap of the race on the exact same white-walled compound. Irrespective of failing to rating any factors in the year-closing race, Alexander Albon established the 3rd-fastest time at the Yas Marina Circuit with a time of 1m27.845s.

His ninth-fastest race lap of 2023 also noticed Verstappen protected the DHL Speediest Lap Award, with Lewis Hamilton (four) and Perez ending powering.

No time established – Exceeding the observe restrictions on his incredibly hot laps, Logan Sargeant unsuccessful to established a time in the course of qualifying. Nonetheless, he was permitted to race at the stewards’ discretion just after acquiring proven the necessary velocity in the previously element of the weekend.

Disappointment – It was still yet again a disappointing race for the Haas outfit just after a promising qualifying outcome from Nico Hulkenberg, who place his auto P8 on the grid with an eye-catching work in the closing qualifying phase. Nonetheless, Haas’s woes with tyre use ongoing in the fifty seven-lap race and the Emmerich-born German racer slid back again to P15 on Sunday.

Tsunoda – AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda took his most effective at any time starting up place in the Abu Dhabi qualifying session, securing the sixth fastest lap. The Japanese driver finished the race length with an bold 1-prevent tactic that noticed him direct the race at 1 level just right before his required tyre transform. It intended that Tsunoda grew to become only the next Japanese driver to direct an F1 race just after Takuma Sato at the Nurburgring in 2004.

Stage-scorers – 4 groups scored with the two autos in Abu Dhabi with Pink Bull, Mercedes, McLaren and Aston Martin all ending in the major 10 with the two their autos. Ferrari scored eighteen factors courtesy of Charles Leclerc though Yuki Tsunoda took eighth next an bold 1-prevent tactic.

For Alpine, the year-closing Abu Dhabi turned into a disappointment, as it marked the 1st time given that the Italian Grand Prix that they unsuccessful to rating a solitary level in a race.

Rookie motorists – The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend started off off in odd vogue as 9 groups fielded alternate motorists who experienced not raced in additional than two Grands Prix, as necessary by the System A single polices.

These motorists had been 2023 System two Winner Théo Pourchaire for Alfa Romeo in put of Zhou Guanyu Jack Doohan for Alpine in put of Esteban Ocon Felipe Drugovich for Aston Martin in put of Fernando Alonso Robert Shwartzman for Ferrari in put of Charles Leclerc Oliver Bearman for Haas in put of Nico Hülkenberg Patricio O’Ward for McLaren in put of Lando Norris Frederik Vesti for Mercedes in put of Lewis Hamilton Jake Dennis and Isack Hadjar for Pink Bull Racing in put of Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez, respectively and Zak O’Sullivan for Williams in put of Alexander Albon.

Penalty – Sergio Perez’s depressing year ongoing in Abu Dhabi. The Mexican only capable himself P9 on the grid just after getting rid of his most effective lap time in qualifying. In the race, he exhibited encouraging velocity in his dominant RB19, but been given a 5-next penalty for producing a collision in a fight with Lando Norris.

The Guadalajara-born driver fought his way up to P3, overtaking George Russell in the remaining laps of the race, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc even allow Perez by with two laps to go in the hope that the Mexican could develop up sufficient of a hole to keep in entrance of Russell irrespective of the 5-next penalty which would have been useful for Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship.

Qualifying – Irrespective of acquiring struggles for 1-lap speed previously in the weekend, all 3 qualification classes had been topped by Max Verstappen, who would choose the pole place forward of Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri. These kinds of was the absence of self esteem within the Pink Bull camp that motorsport advisor Helmut Mark guess towards Verstappen, believing that the 3-time planet winner would not place his RB19 on the entrance row of the grid.

Ferrari’s Monégasque driver also triggered a stir on his pretty previous lap of qualifying, which noticed him choose P2 on the grid as he experienced been having difficulties for speed on the gentle tyres forward of qualifying.

No retirement – The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was the 1st year-ending race at any time to conclude with out a solitary retirement. In reality, Carlos Sainz was termed into the pits on the previous lap for what appeared to be a energy device linked situation, but he was however categorised 18th.