With news that the Brazilian GP will regain ‘finale’ status next season, and with both championships sewn up, the new Yas Marina circuit won’t enjoy quite the F1 debut it might have done. But a ‘green’ circuit for all the drivers and a twilight start time could throw up some surprises. We look at Abu Dhabi’s new runners and riders.
Kamui Kobayashi (JPN), Toyota – 20th, 0pts
We may well have seen the last of Timo Glock in a Toyota, after the team confirmed he was still not fit enough to return and that Brazil debutant Kobayashi would get another run-out this season. He showed a bit of naïvety in blocking countryman Kazuki Nakajima, causing the Williams to crash at Interlagos, but he kept Jenson Button behind him for many laps on merit. Didn’t quite make the points in the end, but a similar drive this weekend will surely secure a 2010 seat.
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Mark Webber (AUS), Red Bull – 4th, 61.5pts
While Jenson Button grabbed the attention of the media throng at Interlagos, Mark Webber quietly climbed the top step of the podium for only the second time in F1. Like his earlier win in Germany, it was almost embarrassingly easy for the Australian, whose victory never really looked in doubt when the teams’ fuel strategies were revealed and the first pitstops made. With the pressure off in both title races, Webber can just look forward to a brand-new ‘modern classic’ track to get his teeth into.
Kimi Räikkönen (FIN), Ferrari – 6th, 48pts
He’s had the same version of the F60 since Hungary way back in July, but the solid results have kept on coming, including a win in Belgium, and despite the fact that McLaren have continued work on their MP4-24 at every race, Ferrari lie just a point behind their British rivals in the constructors’ standings. This is Kimi’s swansong in a Ferrari, and with a 2010 deal at McLaren or Toyota still in the balance, it may yet prove to be the 2007 champ’s farewell from F1 altogether.
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Sébastien Buemi (SUI), Toro Rosso – 17th, 5pts
He’s had some stick in his rookie season – some fair, some less so – and after two DNFs in a row, the Swiss needed a change of fortune. That came with a stellar sixth in Brazil qualifying as the Toro Rosso STR4 inherited some of the RBR sister car’s improvements, and Buemi kept his head at Interlagos to claim seventh in the race. With the new Yas Marina track effectively a level playing field, the less experienced rookies could benefit, and Buemi might just make it to Q3 again.
Fernando Alonso (SPA), Renault – 9th, 26pts
Alonso is apparently making an emotional farewell to his Renault ‘family’ in Abu Dhabi, but no one can seriously believe for a second that Fernando’s exit to Ferrari isn’t the move the Spaniard has been dreaming of, particularly now that Flavio Briatore is gone. That Singapore podium this year already seems a while back, and he hasn’t made the late surge he did last year, but remember who won that last brand-new race in Singapore? How Renault would love another in Abu Dhabi – without a hint of controversy…
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