F1 Abu Dhabi GP: Max Verstappen wins the race

Verstappen took the lead right away and only briefly ceded it to Charles Leclerc of Ferrari during the pit stop cycle. Divergent tyre strategies used by Leclerc and Sergio Perez’s second Red Bull in their battle for second place in the World Championship added spice to the race. With the help of Verstappen, who was also on a one-stop out front and had tyre information, two-stopper Perez was able to catch the one-stopping Leclerc in the closing moments. However, Perez was unable to get close enough to make a move, and Leclerc finished second by 1.3 seconds in both the race and the points.

2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix results

How the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix unfolded

With the majority of the field starting on medium-compound tyres, Verstappen narrowly held onto his pole position on the run to Turn 1 ahead of Perez, Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), and Carlos Sainz. Hamilton was forced wide on the exit as a result of Sainz’s lunging attack on him as they approached Turn 6. The Mercedes briefly rose above the kerb as a result. After entering Turn 7 in a straight line, Hamilton initially held the lead. However, after being urged to let Sainz regain the lead, Hamilton did so on Lap 4. Hamilton DRS-ed past Sainz into Turn 9 a lap later, but Sainz stayed within range and returned the favour four laps later at the same point.

George Russell then passed Hamilton in the second Mercedes to take fifth place as Hamilton was lamenting a loss of power. By lap 10, Verstappen had moved away from Perez by 2.7 seconds, with Leclerc and Sainz following them equally, each by 3 seconds. Lando Norris finished seventh for McLaren behind the Mercedes combination, as Sebastian Vettel battled with Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso’s Alpines in his final-ever Grand Prix. On lap 15, Ocon was the first driver in the top 10 to pit for hard tyres, followed by Perez and Russell (who had a very poor stop and was released into Norris’ path, incurring a 5-second time penalty). Perez fought Vettel once more, which cost him time in the race for second.

Verstappen and Leclerc ran long in the top two positions, and Sainz pitted on lap 18, falling further and further behind Vettel. Verstappen pitted on lap 20, allowing Leclerc to hold the lead until he did so again on lap 22. He rejoined just ahead of Sainz but far behind Perez due to a slow stop. Perez had passed Verstappen during this stint and was two seconds behind his teammate by half the distance. Leclerc pulled away from Perez, who pitted once more for fresh tyres on lap 34 as teams debated whether to adopt a one-stop or two-stop strategy. Ironically, it could have been the other way around because Leclerc was instructed to pit if Perez didn’t.

Perez didn’t have enough speed to get close enough to get into Leclerc’s DRS range on the final lap, despite Verstappen telling him to go “full send” on the tyres. Verstappen defeated Leclerc and Perez by more than eight seconds, with Sainz finishing fourth. Russell, Norris, Ocon, Lance Stroll of the Aston Martin, Daniel Ricciardo of the McLaren, and Vettel, who earned a point in his final race because of Hamilton’s retirement, finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Nicholas Latifi (Williams) and Mick Schumacher (Haas) collided at Turn 5, however they both reconnected without bringing out the safety car. Schumacher received a 5 second penalty for starting the fight.

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2022 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix fastest laps