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It is perhaps the final race of the season however there are nonetheless loads of speaking factors remaining for the finale in Abu Dhabi, not least the matter of deciding the constructors’ championship.
Leaders McLaren initially appeared to have put one hand on the trophy on the penultimate spherical in Qatar after they scored a one-two lead to Saturday’s Sprint. However, the Woking squad had been outscored by rivals Ferrari come Sunday, with Lando Norris dropping down from what seemed to be a sure podium to tenth place after receiving a 10-second cease/go penalty.
READ MORE: PALMER: Keep Perez, promote from RB, or signal another person – who ought to Red Bull run alongside Verstappen subsequent yr?
This helped the Scuderia to shut the hole right down to 21 factors, which means that they’re nonetheless in competition to take the title. But to take action would require not solely a robust outing in Abu Dhabi for the Scuderia however a troublesome one for McLaren, provided that even a one-two end – full with scoring the quickest lap – wouldn’t be sufficient to seal the championship.
There can also be a possible battle at play between Norris and Charles Leclerc for P2 within the drivers’ standings, with that aforementioned penalty for Norris dropping his benefit over Leclerc to simply eight factors.
Red Bull are mathematically out of the working for the constructors’, but it was world champion Max Verstappen who particularly caught the attention in Qatar, having bounced again from a one-place grid penalty to surge into the lead and take victory. Can he proceed that type to shut off his fourth title-winning yr in fashion?
On the opposite aspect of the storage, Sergio Perez’s future stays unclear following a troublesome season for the Mexican, whereas RB are but to verify who will race alongside Yuki Tsunoda on the squad in 2025, although Liam Lawson seems to be the probably candidate.
Speaking of RB, the Red Bull sister outfit stay in a hotly-contested struggle for sixth alongside Haas and Alpine – on a weekend the place the latter will likely be fielding a brand new title within the type of Jack Doohan, whose debut has been introduced ahead from 2025 as he replaces Esteban Ocon. Can the Australian impress forward of his first full marketing campaign subsequent yr?
FAN VIEW: Riding excessive after his fifth-place end in Qatar, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly is seen as a close to certainty by F1 Play avid gamers for a end within the factors this weekend. Haas’s Kevin Magnussen, who has been stable all season and sits tenth within the drivers’ standings, has his regular sturdy backing.
