Well, what a season we\u2019ve had. It\u2019s been chock-full of controversy, collisions, craziness and world class driving! We\u2019ve seen Lewis Hamilton impressively win another title in Mexico two weeks ago, as well as witnessing a number of emerging drivers come to the forefront over the course of the season. Last week in Brazil, the Brit finished the race in first place on the winners\u2019 podium, with Red Bull\u2019s Max Vertrappen in second and Ferrari\u2019s Kimi R\u00e4ikk\u00f6nen coming in third.<\/p>\n
But, the action isn\u2019t over just yet! We have one last race to look forward to \u2013 the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. So \u2013 for one final time this season \u2013 read on as Karting Nation will give you all you need to know about the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
What Time Does The 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Start?<\/b><\/p>\n
As usual, if you\u2019re looking forward to that Sunday morning lie in of yours, you can do just that without missing an ounce of F1 action! The 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will start on Sunday<\/p>\n
25th<\/sup> November at 13:10 GMT, with qualifying taking place the day before at 13:10 GMT.<\/p>\n Luckily for us, that\u2019s not all the action! But, you\u2019ll have to get up early(ish)! You can catch the practice rounds from Friday 23rd<\/sup> November at 09:00 GMT with the second round commencing at 13:00 GMT. The final practice round will take place on Saturday 24<\/span>th<\/sup> November at 10:00 GMT, before the qualifying starts.<\/span><\/p>\n History of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is the baby of the F1 calendar, having only been around since 2009. However the event was first announced two years earlier at the Abu Dhabi F1 Festival in the United Arab Emirates.<\/p>\n The race was the first ever day-night race, as the race started at 17:00 local time. Floodlights were used from the start of the event in order to illuminate the circuit and to ensure a seamless transition from daylight to darkness. Every other Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has been held as a day-night race ever since. There have been a total of nine editions of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with rivals Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton winning three times each.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Fun fact: drivers from only three countries have ever won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Germany, Great Britain and\u2026 Okay, we\u2019ll tell you \u2013 Finland! Kimi R\u00e4ikk\u00f6nen won in his Lotus back in 2012 while Mercedes\u2019 Valtteri Bottas won last year\u2019s edition of the event. That win means that Mercedes hold the bragging rights in this event with a total of four wins to Red Bull\u2019s three.<\/p>\n The track, which holds this event is the Yas Marina Circuit, is located on Yas Island \u2013 around 30 minutes from central Abu Dhabi. Despite being primarily used for F1, the first ever event on the Hermann Tilke-designed track was the two-day GP2 Asia Series in 2009. Since it\u2019s inception, the track has received both praise and criticism from a number of drivers from past and present. Nico Rosberg and Fernando Alonso praised the track\u2019s uniqueness, while former Italian driver Giancarlo Fisichella branded a certain section of the track as \u2018both very difficult and dangerous\u2019. Ferrari\u2019s Kimi R\u00e4ikk\u00f6nen was straight to the point, saying \u201cthe first few turns are quite good, but the rest of it is s***.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n With a total length of 5.6km (3.5mi), Sebastian Vettel holds the record for the quickest lap at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009 with a time of 1:40.279, when he was in Team Red Bull. This event has a total number of 55 laps and an overall race length of 305.5km (189.8mi). The 21-corner track is full of long straights and tight corners, as it encounters some stunning and unique features – such as a marina, the Yas Hotel Abu Dhabi, a striking facade lighting design and sand dunes. Believe it or not, the circuit actually has a connection with Shropshire, England! The surface of the track is made of graywacke aggregate \u2013 shipped in from Bayston Hill quarry in Shropshire. This aggregate is highly acclaimed by circuit personnel and drivers alike, as it offers a superior amount of grip compared to other materials.<\/p>\n Who Won The 2017 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?<\/b><\/p>\n As previously mentioned, Mercedes\u2019 Valtteri Bottas won last year\u2019s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel completing the podium in second and third place, respectively. The front of the field did not change at all throughout the race, with Bottas finishing the race from pole position. It was a dominant drive from the Finnish driver, keeping Lewis Hamilton\u2019s challenges at bay throughout.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Valtteri Bottas achieved a time of 1:34:14.062, with his Mercedes teammate Hamilton finishing +3.899 seconds behind and Ferrari\u2019s Sebastian Vettel coming across the line with a time of +19.330.<\/p>\n Who Is Likely To Win The 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?<\/b><\/p>\n From from current crop of drivers, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton have registered three wins each throughout their career. So, if the statistics are to taken as gospel, then it\u2019ll likely be one of these two at the top of the podium come Sunday. However, it\u2019d be silly to rule out Mercedes\u2019 Valtteri Bottas after his solid win at last year\u2019s event.<\/p>\n Another contender for the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix could be Red Bull\u2019s Max Verstappen \u2013 his fine form of late has earned him a fair amount of points, as he currently sits in fifth place in the Driver Standings. It\u2019s all well and good taking guesses, but there\u2019s only one way to find out \u2013 and that\u2019s to catch the big race on Sunday 25th<\/sup> November!<\/p>\n Final Thoughts<\/b><\/p>\n Now that you\u2019ve found out everything you need to know about the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, all that\u2019s left is to tune into the action, which starts from this Friday, 23rd November. As we always say here at Karting Nation, it\u2019s sure to be an eventful race, and we can\u2019t wait for the action on the circuit to commence! Be sure to catch the main event this Sunday at 13:10 GMT.<\/p>\n We\u2019re sad to announce that this is the last edition of Karting Nation\u2019s grand prix previews, but hopefully we\u2019ll be back for the start of the 2019 F1 season which starts on 17th<\/sup> March 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. See you in the springtime!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Well, what a season we\u2019ve had. 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