F1 Driver Form: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Verstappen has won the last four Yas Marina races from pole position, Leclerc has finished as runner-up in the last two years and three drivers hold a 100% Q3 appearance record at the track. Here’s everything you need to know about each driver’s history at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix!

🇳🇱 Max VERSTAPPEN

Max Verstappen has won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from pole position in each of the last four seasons. He has finished in the top five here in all of the last eight seasons, and has finished in the top three in all of the last six years. 2015, when he finished 16th for Toro Rosso, is his only non-points scoring (and non-top five) appearance at the track.

Verstappen has reached Q3 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in all of the last eight seasons, qualifying in the top six each time. Verstappen did not out-qualify a team-mate here until 2019, but is yet to be beaten on Saturday since then. He has started on the front row in the last five years here, his 2019 front row coming courtesy of a grid penalty for Valtteri Bottas.

MAX VERSTAPPEN’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇲🇽 Sergio PEREZ

Sergio Perez recorded his first Abu Dhabi Grand Prix podium finish in 2022. His third place finish followed two consecutive seasons in which the Mexican failed to reach the chequered flag at Yas Marina Circuit. He finished second on the road in the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but was demoted to fourth in the final order due to a time penalty for causing a collision earlier in the race with Lando Norris.

Perez scored in seven consecutive races at Yas Marina Circuit from 2013 to 2019, but his 2022 podium was his first top four result at the venue. 2011 and 2012 are the only seasons other than 2020 and 2021 in which Perez failed to score a point at the track.

Despite his high points scoring rate, Perez has reached Q3 at the circuit only seven times from his 13 appearances and has qualified in the top five only three times. He recorded his first front row qualification at the track in 2022, qualifying behind his team-mate in second place. 2019 is the last time Perez out-qualified his team-mate at Yas Marina Circuit.

SERGIO PEREZ’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇬🇧 Lewis HAMILTON

In 2022, Lewis Hamilton failed to finish the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. It marked the first time he failed to finish on the podium at Yas Marina Circuit since 2013, as well as his first retirement at the track since 2012. With ninth place in 2023, his runner-up spot in the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – a race in which he was overtaken for victory and the title win on the final lap – remains his last podium finish here.

Hamilton has been victorious in Abu Dhabi five times, while his third place in 2020 is his only other non top two finish at Yas Marina Circuit since 2013. His retirements here in 2009, 2012 and 2022 are the only times that he has not picked up points at the track, with his seventh place in 2013 and ninth in 2023 the only other times he has not finished on the podium.

Hamilton has a highly impressive qualifying record here, with five poles. 2022 and 2023 are the only times that Hamilton has qualified outside of the top four here, recording his worst qualifying result – and first non-Q3 appearance – at the track in 2023. Aside from the last two years, a fourth place qualification in 2013 and a third place qualification in 2020 are the only times that Hamilton has not started from the front row at the track.

Given his high starting positions, it’s unsurprising that 2023 was the first time that Hamilton gained more than one position from where he started at the track. 2010, 2013, 2020, 2022 and 2023 are the only years in which Hamilton has not led at least three laps of the event.

LEWIS HAMILTON’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇬🇧 George RUSSELL

George Russell finished on the podium at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix for the first time in 2023, finishing in third place. He finished in fifth place in 2022, picking up points at Yas Marina Circuit for the first time, having never previously finished above 15th place at the track.

On his final appearance with Williams, in 2021, Russell retired from the race. It’s his only retirement so far at the venue.

Russell’s sixth place in qualifying in 2022 was the first time he has progressed past Q1 at the track. He bettered that result in 2023, qualifying fourth. 2021 was a rare occasion on which Russell was out-qualified by a team-mate while at Williams and he was out-qualified by Lewis Hamilton in 2022.

Russell has gained a single position from where he has started on all four occasions that he has reached the chequered flag at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Prior to F1, in the four races in which he contested at the Yas Marina Circuit, Russell never finished below fourth. He finished as runner up in the first GP3 race of the 2017 weekend at the track, a weekend on which he also partook in Free Practice 1 with Force India. In 2018, Russell secured the F2 title at the circuit with a win in the Feature Race. He went on to finish fourth in the Sprint Race on his final F2 appearance.

GEORGE RUSSELL’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇲🇨 Charles LECLERC

2020 marks the only time that Charles Leclerc has failed to score at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in his six appearances at the circuit. He finished seventh for Sauber in 2018, before going on to finish third for Ferrari in 2019. After a tenth place finish in 2021, he recorded his best result to date at the track in 2022, finishing as runner-up. He finished as runner-up for a second consecutive year at the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Leclerc has qualified in the top ten on all six outings here, with a best qualifying result of second in 2023. That marked Ferrari’s first-ever front row start at Yas Marina Circuit. 2021 was the first – and so far only – time Leclerc has been out-qualified by a team-mate at the track.

Before reaching F1, Leclerc raced at the Yas Marina Circuit in both GP3 and F2. In 2017, he took podium finishes in both the Feature and Sprint races on his last F2 appearances, standing on the top step of the podium after the Sprint race.

CHARLES LECLERC’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇪🇸 Carlos SAINZ

Carlos Sainz finished on the podium at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with a third place finish. That’s his best result at the track and came amidst a run of five consecutive points-scoring appearances at Yas Marina Circuit, from 2018 to 2022.

Sainz’s points-scoring streak at the track came to an end in 2023 as he retired in the closing stages of the race and was classified only 18^th. He also failed to score on his first three appearances here. He came home 11th in 2015, before recording successive DNFs in 2016 and 2017.

Sainz failed to reach Q3 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2023 for the first time since 2018, recording his first Q1 exit at the track since 2016. His best qualifying result here is fourth, which he recorded in 2022. Sainz has out-qualified his team-mate here only twice: in his maiden season in 2015 and in 2021.

CARLOS SAINZ’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇬🇧 Lando NORRIS

Lando Norris has scored points on all five appearances so far at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He finished eighth in 2019, before bettering that with a fifth place finish in 2020. In 2021, he came home in seventh place and he finished sixth last year. Fifth remains his best result at the circuit – he equalled his best Abu Dhabi Grand Prix result to date in 2023.

Norris has a 100% Q3 record at Yas Marina Circuit, qualifying a best of third in 2021. 2023 marked the first time in his five appearances that he was out-qualified by a team-mate at the track.

Before F1, Norris made his F2 debut at Yas Marina Circuit in 2017, making a one-off appearance before joining the series full time in 2018. That year, he finished fifth in the Feature Race and finished as runner-up on his final F2 appearance in the Sprint Race.

LANDO NORRIS’ ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇦🇺 Oscar PIASTRI

Oscar Piastri finished sixth on his first Abu Dhabi Grand Prix appearance in 2023. He finished one position behind his team-mate, having out-qualified Lando Norris the previous day and lining up third on the grid.

Piastri previously raced at Yas Marina Circuit in the 2016-17 Formula 4 UAE Championship, in Formula Renault Eurocup in 2019 and in Formula 2 in 2021. Piastri has taken two wins in Abu Dhabi – one in 2019 and the other in F2, in the 2021 Feature Race. He also finished on the podium in the first Sprint Race that weekend.

OSCAR PIASTRI’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇪🇸 Fernando ALONSO

Until 2022, Fernando Alonso held a 100% finish rate at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He had scored points on eight of his 11 appearances prior to 2022. After a DNF on his final appearance with Alpine, Alonso returned to the points in the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with a seventh place finish – his best result at the track in a decade. His best result here overall is second, which is where he finished in both 2011 and 2012.

Alonso has reached Q3 at the track six times, has been eliminated in Q2 five times and exited in Q1 twice. Seventh in qualifying for the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ended a streak of four consecutive Q2 exits at the venue, three of which were 11^th place qualifications. His seventh place in qualifying for the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix marked his best Saturday result at the track since 2012, while third place in 2010 is his best qualifying result to date at the track.

The 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, in which he lost the title to Sebastian Vettel, is the only race at the circuit in which Alonso has lost more than one position from where he has started. Alonso has led only three laps here, doing so in 2011. Alonso made a hospital visit in 2013 after bouncing over the track’s kerbs at 150mph, suffering a 25G impact.

FERNANDO ALONSO’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇨🇦 Lance STROLL

Finishing in tenth place, Lance Stroll scored at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix for the first time in 2020. He bettered that result with eighth place in 2022 and scored for a third time with another tenth place finish in 2023. Stroll failed to finish the race in 2019; which is his only retirement so far at Yas Marina Circuit.

2020 is the only time that Stroll has reached Q3 at Yas Marina Circuit, qualifying in eighth position, while 2018 is the only year that Stroll has exited in Q1 at the track. Stroll has out-qualified his team-mate twice at the venue, in 2020 and 2021.

Stroll has gained positions from where he has started at Yas Marina Circuit three times – in 2018, when he gained seven places, in 2022, when he gained six places and in 2023, when he moved up three positions from where he started.

LANCE STROLL’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇫🇷 Esteban OCON

From seven appearances at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon has scored points four times. He finished eighth in 2017 with Force India, ninth in 2020 & 2021 and recorded his best result here to date in 2022, with seventh place. 2023 marked the first time Ocon failed to score at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix since 2018.

The 2018 race – his final appearance before his year out of the sport – is the only time that Ocon has failed to reach the end of the race at Yas Marina Circuit.

Ocon has reached Q3 at Yas Marina Circuit four times, qualifying in ninth place on three of those occasions. He set his best qualifying result at the circuit to date in 2022, with eighth place. Ocon just missed out on Q3 in 2020, qualifying in 11th. 2023 was the first time that Ocon was out-qualified by a team-mate at the circuit since 2017.

ESTEBAN OCON’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇫🇷 Pierre GASLY

With fifth place, Pierre Gasly recorded his best Abu Dhabi Grand Prix result to date in 2021. It’s one of only two times that the Frenchman has picked up points from his seven appearances at the circuit, having also finished eighth in 2020. Gasly recorded his only retirement at the track in 2018.

2023 was only the second time, after 2020, that Gasly reached Q3 at Yas Marina Circuit. He was eliminated in Q1 on his first two appearances and qualified 12th in both 2019 and 2021. He recorded his third Q1 elimination at the track in 2022, where he was out-qualified by his team-mate for a third season in succession. Last year, he out-qualified a team-mate for the first time since 2019 and equalled his best qualifying result to date at the track with tenth place.

PIERRE GASLY’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇹🇭 Alex ALBON

Alex Albon finished in the top six on both of his appearances at Yas Marina Circuit with Red Bull, with a best result of fourth in 2020. He’s yet to score a point here with Williams, having finished 13^th in 2022 and 14^th in 2023.

Albon also qualified in the top six on both outings with Red Bull, but qualified on the back row in 2022. He reached Q2 in 2023, qualifying 14^th. Albon has out-qualified his team-mate in Abu Dhabi in each of the last two seasons.

Albon previously raced at Yas Marina Circuit in both GP3 and F2. Albon retired from both GP3 races here in 2016, suffering a huge crash in the second race. His best result so far here came in F2 in 2017, where he finished as runner-up in the Sprint Race. In 2018, in F2, he finished fourteenth in the Feature Race and eighth in the Sprint Race.

ALEX ALBON’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇦🇷 Franco COLAPINTO

Franco Colapinto made his Formula 2 debut at Yas Marina Circuit with MP Motorsport in 2023. After finishing 19th in the Sprint Race, the Argentine driver retired from the Feature Race.

🇯🇵 Yuki TSUNODA

Yas Marina Circuit has been a good track for Yuki Tsunoda so far in Formula 1. Tsunoda recorded the best result of his rookie season at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, coming home in fourth place. He failed to finish in the points in 2022 but came home in 11^th place. In 2023, Tsunoda led jultiple laps of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on his way to an eighth place finish.

Tsunoda has out-qualified his team-mate on all three previous outings at Yas Marina Circuit, reaching Q3 with an eighth place qualification in 2021 and bettering that result with sixth place in 2023. He was eliminated in Q2 in 2022.

YUKI TSUNODA’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇳🇿 Liam LAWSON

This will be Liam Lawson’s first outing at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, though he did make an appearance with Red Bull in Free Practice 1 at Yas Marina Circuit in 2022.

Lawson raced at Yas Marina Circuit in F2 in both 2021 and 2022. He scored podium finishes in both races at the track in 2022, winning the Sprint and finishing third in the Feature.

🇫🇮 Valtteri BOTTAS

Valtteri Bottas has finished on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix podium three times, including with his only win to date at the circuit in 2017. There have been five occasions from his nine appearances at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that Bottas has failed to score. 2022 was the first of those such occasions since 2016, when he failed to finish on his final appearance with Williams. He finished only 19^th last year.

Bottas took pole position for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2017. 2021 was the first time since 2016 that Bottas did not qualify on the front row at the event, while 2022 was the first time since 2016 that he did not reach Q3 at Yas Marina Circuit. He has qualified 18^th in each of the last two seasons.

2019 – when he finished fourth having started twentieth – and his drive from 18th to 15th in 2022 are the only times that Bottas has finished in a better position than where he started at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

VALTTERI BOTTAS’ ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇨🇳 ZHOU Guanyu

Zhou Guanyu finished 12th on his first appearance at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2022. He out-qualified his team-mate, reaching Q2 and qualifying in 15th place. Zhou failed to out-qualify his team-mate in 2023, qualifying on the back row. He made up two places in the race to finish two positions ahead of Valtteri Bottas.

Zhou previously raced at Yas Marina Circuit in the F3 Asia Championship, in which he won two races at the track. He also raced here in Formula 2 in 2019 and 2021. He recorded three podium finishes from his five F2 races at the circuit, winning the second Sprint Race of the 2021 weekend.

ZHOU GUANYU’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇩🇰 Kevin MAGNUSSEN

Kevin Magnussen’s tenth place finish at the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is the only time that he has picked up a point at Yas Marina Circuit. He has reached the chequered flag on all but one of his seven appearances, having retired on his final outing with Renault in 2016.

Magnussen is yet to reach Q3 at the track, with a best qualifying result of 11th with McLaren in 2014. That year, he moved up two positions on the final grid due to grid penalties for other drivers. It’s his only top ten start so far in Abu Dhabi. He recorded his fourth Q1 exit at the track in 2023.

KEVIN MAGNUSSEN’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY

🇩🇪 Nico HULKENBERG

Nico Hulkenberg has picked up points on four of his ten appearances at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but has not scored at Yas Marina Circuit since 2017. His best result here is sixth, recorded in both 2014 and 2017. He has failed to finish twice, including in 2018 when his Renault car was flipped over on the opening lap.

Hulkenberg has qualified in the top ten on all but one of his last nine appearances at Yas Marina Circuit. His best qualifying result here is sixth, which he recorded in 2013. He moved up to fifth on the final grid that year. His worst qualifying result here is 15^th, recorded on his final appearance with Williams in his rookie 2010 season.

NICO HULKENBERG’S ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX HISTORY