Hamilton Dominates Saturday Race in Abu Dhabi

Qualifying:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time
1	2	Lewis Hamilton		1:30.837
2	62	Dave Cassidy		1:31.211
3	63	Jules Bianchi		1:31.252
4	1	Sebastian Vettel		1:31.337
5	29	Pastor Maldonado		1:32.105
6	28	Romain Grosjean		1:32.581
7	27	Nathan McKane		1:32.610
8	99	Kevin Magnussen		1:32.619
9	98	Salvatore Miccoli		1:32.650
10	21	Stoffel Vandoorne		1:32.735
11	30	Mike Rockenfeller		1:32.580
12	22	Johnny Cecotto Jr.		1:32.781
13	91	Max Verstappen		1:32.819
14	43	Sébastien Bourdais		1:32.912
15	90	Daniel Ricciardo		1:32.914
16	32	Daniel Melrose		1:32.951
17	5	Valtteri Bottas		1:33.042
18	31	Rhys Davies		1:33.081
19	55	Artem Markelov		1:33.352
20	66	Esteban Ocon		1:33.453
21	12	Scott Dixon		1:33.588
22	6	Ma Qinghua		1:33.592
23	67	Marcel Agyemang-Badu		1:33.629
24	56	Bradley Dagnall		1:33.760
25	11	Carlos Sainz Jr		1:34.058
26	42	Davide Valsecchi		1:34.295

* demoted five places for changing engine/gearbox

Report:

With a championship battle that is a lot more alive than it used to be a few weeks ago, Formula One left Europe behind and began the final rounds of the 2018 season overseas. The deserts of the United Arabian Emirates being the first stop of this journey, the Yas Marina Circuit was the venue of round 31 of the world championship.

Lewis Hamilton went on to dominate qualifying, setting the fastest time without much trouble in Q1, Q2 and Q3. After having secured two points for doing so, he won the start and kept the lead. He went on to extend his lead quickly using efficient and fast laps and was able to bring it all home to secure his ninth win of 2018.

Behind the Brit, things got rather exciting: Sebastian Vettel proved unable to put the Precisions away, Dave Cassidy and Jules Bianchi were both able to pass the reigning world champion on the track after having a bad start. In the end, it was Caterham-Judd, who were able to aid Vettel by flushing him out ahead after the stops.

The midfield behind the superstars was a close battle outside of Pastor Maldonado’s lonely race: many drivers had a chance of scoring points, some ending up successful like Mike Rockenfeller, others unable to make the most of their opportunities: Daniel Melrose ended up outside of the points, as did the two Calinetic drivers.

Race:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time/Retired	Points
1	2	Lewis Hamilton		49:13.698	17
2	1	Sebastian Vettel		+10.931	12
3	63	Jules Bianchi		+16.553	10
4	29	Pastor Maldonado		+35.314	8
5	99	Kevin Magnussen		+49.713	6
6	21	Stoffel Vandoorne		+53.528	5
7	98	Salvatore Miccoli		+60.345	4
8	30	Mike Rockenfeller		+66.858	3
9	22	Johnny Cecotto Jr.		+67.511	2
10	27	Nathan McKane		+69.895	1
11	32	Daniel Melrose		+71.517	0
12	90	Daniel Ricciardo		+71.950	0
13	31	Rhys Davies		+79.589	0
14	67	Esteban Ocon		+83.537	0
15	28	Romain Grosjean		+83.834	0
16	5	Valtteri Bottas		+87.231	0
17	12	Scott Dixon		+91.346	0
18	42	Davide Valsecchi		+1 Lap	0
19	11	Carlos Sainz Jr.		+1 Lap	0
20	55	Artem Markelov		+1 Lap	0
21	56	Bradley Dagnall		+1 Lap	0
22	43	Sébastien Bourdais		Accident	0
23	91	Max Verstappen		Accident	0
DNF	62	Dave Cassidy		Accident	0
DNF	6	Ma Qinghua		Engine	0
DNF	66	Marcel Agyemang-Badu		Engine	0

Fastest Lap:

Sebastian Vettel – 1:31.870

Infinite Improbability Drive Of The Race:

Nathan McKane – after being an innocent victim on lap one, he fought back to grab a point.

Reject Of The Race:

Sébastien Bourdais – ran into Nathan McKane and ran into a wall later down the road.