F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2024 preview: The last race decides the Championship

Red Bull is out of the running for the top spot, but McLaren and Ferrari both have a chance.

By Bruce Brown Published December 4, 2024

Yas Marina Circuit for the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2024. — Courtesy of Formula 1

The 2024 F1 racing season ends with the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 6 to 8. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen locked in the Drivers’ Championship during the Las Vegas Grand Prix, but the Constructors’ Championship remains undecided as Ferrari still has a chance to outscore McLaren to win the biggest team prize of the season.

The challenges of the Yas Marina Circuit

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is run on the Yas Marina Circuit. It consists of 58 laps of the 3.28-mile track, or 190.14 miles. Max Verstappen set the lap record in 2021 at 1:26.103 (minutes: seconds). Verstappen won the race in 2023 when Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc came in second, and Mercedes driver George Russell was third.

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The track has sixteen turns, with two DRS zones allowing overtaking. The current weather forecast is for highs in the 80s. The track temperatures will be higher, which could make staying cool a challenge during the race.

The Constructors’ Championship is at stake

McLaren currently has 640 Constructors’ Championship points. There is a potential for any team to win a total of 44 points (during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, so Ferrari’s current 619-point total puts the team in reach of the prize. Red Bull cannot win the Championship, although they could place second if Verstappen and Sergio Perez finish in the top three and Ferrari doesn’t gain more than four points – neither of which outcome is likely. The McLaren and Ferrari race cars have been exceptionally fast recently, and both drivers have delivered, so it’s possible that either team could win.

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix schedule

The best way to watch F1 race events live is with F1TV Pro, a subscription streaming service from Formula 1. The paid service includes an option to choose a cockpit view from any of the 20 race cars live, pre- and post-race shows, archives of past races and seasons, and much more. ESPN subscribers can also watch the races live with the additional content. F1TV also has a free, ad-supported version that posts race replays five days after the race.

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Race Event	Date	Local Time (UTC +4)	U.S. Time (EDT)
Free Practice	December 6	1:30 PM	4:30 AM
Free Practice	December 6	5:00 PM	8:00 AM
Free Practice	December 7	2:30 PM	5:30 AM
Qualifying	December 7	6:00 PM	9:00 AM
Grand Prix	December 8	5:00 PM	8:00 AM

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A Digital Trends Contributing Editor and Contributor for TheManual.com, Bruce Brown writes e-mobility reviews and covers…

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F1 Qatar Grand Prix results: Yellow flags, penalties, and Max wins again

Harsh penalties changed the outcomes

Formula 1 race cars during the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.

The F1 2024 Qatar Grand Prix was an exciting race but disappointing for key Formula 1 players. Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who won the pole position in the Qualifying event, had to start at P2 because of an F1 Track Steward penalty. Still, he won the race anyway, adding to his already Championship-winning points margin over all other drivers. Yellow flags and penalties during the Grand Prix affected the outcomes of the Grand Prix.

Driver disappointments
Verstappen's one-place starting grid penalty for the Grand Prix occurred because the Stewards ruled he slowed unnecessarily ahead of Mercedes driver George Russell during the Qualifying event, unfairly affecting Russell's fast lap time.

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Surprise finishes for the F1 2024 Qatar Grand Prix Sprint and Qualifying event

Norris returned a favor, even though the team told him not to do it.

Formula 1 race cars during the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.

The F1 2024 Qatar Grand Prix Sprint race on November 30, 2024, and the Qualifying event for the December 1 Grand Prix were both competitive with unexpected finishes. McLaren driver Lando Norris moved aside to let teammate Oscar Piastri finish first in the Sprint race, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen surprised everyone, including himself, when he won the pole position in the Grand Prix starting grid.
Qatar Sprint race results
Only six of the 24 Grand Prix races in 2024 were scheduled to include Sprint races. F1 includes Sprint races to add excitement to the weekend and give the drivers and teams a chance to pick up extra Championship points. The first eight finishers win sprint race points. The winner gets eight points, and each successive finisher gets one less. The driver who comes in eighth then gets one point.

In Saturday's Sprint race, McLaren's Lando Norris was leading when, just before crossing the finish line, he slowed down, moved over, and allowed teammate Oscar Piastri to win.

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F1 Qatar Grand Prix practice and Sprint Qualifying results

The 2024 Constructors' Championship is still in tight contention

Formula 1 race cars during the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.

This weekend is the next-to-last race in the 2024 F1 Grand Prix season. Qatar is in the desert in the Middle East, and the race events all happen at night when the temperatures aren't as hot as during the day.

The Qatar Grand Prix is a Sprint race, one of only six in the 24-race season. That means there's an additional, shorter race on Saturday before the Grand Prix Qualifying event and Sunday's Grand Prix. Drivers (and their teams) can score up to eight Championship points that count for Drivers' and Constructors' Championships in the Sprint race.
What to watch for in the Qatar Grand Prix
Max Verstappen won the 2024 F1 Drivers' World Championship at last week's Las Vegas Grand Prix, but exciting competitive races remain.
Drivers' Championship
Max won the crown for the season, his fourth consecutive Championship, but the competition for second place is still tight, and it may foretell Max's biggest threats for the 2025 season. Verstappen will undoubtedly continue to rack up points, but the fight for second place is between McLaren's Lando Norris, currently with 340 points, and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, who has 319 points.
Constructors' Championship
The fight for the Constructor's title is still tight. McLaren has 608 points, Ferrari has 584, and Red Bull has 555. Red Bull's only hope to win the team crown is for both drivers, Verstappen and Sergio Perez, to finish in the top three places for both races and for McLaren and Ferrari to falter. That scenario is unlikely because Perez has had a dismal season (more on that below) plus McLaren's Norris and Oscar Piastri and Ferrari's Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have been strong all season.