Lando Norris wins the Abu Dhabi GP at the end of the Formula 1 season. The Briton wins ahead of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in the Ferraris, helping McLaren to win the Constructors' Championship.
08.12.2024, 15:58
08.12.2024, 16:10
SDA
The two podium places were not enough for Ferrari to catch McLaren in the prestige duel. The British racing team saved 14 of its 21-point lead in the team standings and can therefore call itself world constructors' champion for the first time since 1998.
With his fourth GP win of the season, Norris also secured second place in the championship standings behind world champion Max Verstappen. Charles Leclerc, who stormed onto the podium from the back of the grid in the 24th and final Grand Prix of the season, finished third in the championship.
Hamilton's race to catch up at Mercedes derby
Max Verstappen ended his fourth world championship season with a 6th place. The Dutchman in the Red missed out on catching up with record winner Lewis Hamilton with a fifth consecutive victory at the Yas Marina Circuit. For the record-breaking world champion, the successful twelve-year era at Mercedes did not end on the podium despite a rapid race to catch up. The Englishman, who started from 16th on the grid and will drive for Ferrari in the future, finished his last Grand Prix for the Silver Arrows in fourth place after a late overtaking maneuver against teammate George Russell.
Bottas' bitter premiere is a fact
Valtteri Bottas had also hoped for a conciliatory finish. However, the Finn retired from his last race for the Sauber team shortly after the halfway point in 15th place after causing a collision with Kevin Magnussen in the Haas. Bottas had already collided with Sergio Perez in the Red Bull shortly after the start and received a 10-second penalty as a result.
With his best qualifying (9th on the grid) of the season, Bottas had raised hopes of scoring his first championship points this year on Saturday. In the end, there was only bitter disappointment for the 2019 and 2020 championship runner-up. This is the first time in 13 years in Formula 1 that the ten-time GP winner, whose future remains open, has finished a season without scoring any points.
His team-mate Zhou Guanyu, who had secured Sauber's first tangible result of the year with 8th place in Qatar a week earlier, finished 13th. Like Bottas, the Chinese driver must also leave the Hinwil-based racing team after three years. Next season, veteran Nico Hülkenberg and the young Formula 2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto will drive for the designated Audi racing team.
