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| A picture from my seat last year. |
Did you know that Lewis Hamilton has claimed two poles and one victory in Abu Dhabi - but that Nico Rosberg had the edge over him in both qualifying and the race last year? Or how about the fact that only once in five races has a driver converted pole into victory at Yas Marina? Ahead of this weekend's 2014 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, we present the key facts, stats and trivia...
Circuit: Yas Marina
Circuit length: 5.554 km
Number of corners: 21 (9 right, 12 left)
DRS zones: 2
Race laps: 55
Race distance: 305.355 km
2014 tyre compounds: supersoft, soft
Circuit lap record: 1m 40.279s - Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, 2009
First world championship Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi: 2009, Yas Marina (won by Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull)
Number of Grands Prix in Abu Dhabi: 5 (all at Yas Marina)
Number of races with at least one safety car appearance: 2 of the last 5
Longest Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi: 2012 (1h 45m 58.667s)
Shortest Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi: 2009 (1h 34m 03.414s)
Last year's pole position: 1m 39.957s - Mark Webber, Red Bull
Last year's podium: 1 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), 2 - Mark Webber (Red Bull), 3 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
Most appearances (current field): 5 - Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button; 4 - Kamui Kobayashi, Felipe Massa, Adrian Sutil
Most wins (driver): 3 - Sebastian Vettel; 1 - Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Raikkonen
Most wins (constructor): 3 - Red Bull; 1 - McLaren, Lotus
Most wins (engine manufacturer): 4 - Renault; 1 - Mercedes
Most pole positions (driver): 2 - Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton; 1 - Mark Webber
Most pole positions (constructor): 3 - Red Bull; 2 - McLaren
Most pole positions (engine manufacturer): 3 - Renault; 2 - Mercedes
Number of wins from pole: One from five races (20 percent)
Lowest winning grid position: 4th (Kimi Raikkonen, Lotus, 2012)
Laps led (current field): 134 - Sebastian Vettel; 86 - Lewis Hamilton; 36 - Kimi Raikkonen; 15 - Jenson Button; 3 - Fernando Alonso
Most podium places (current field): 4 - Sebastian Vettel; 3 - Jenson Button; 2 - Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso; 1 - Kimi Raikkonen, Nico Rosberg
Percentage of 2014 season complete: 95 percent
Maximum number of world championship points still available to a single driver: 50
Significant running sequences going into this weekend: Nico Rosberg - 2 consecutive pole positions, 10 consecutive front-row starts; Lewis Hamilton - 6 consecutive podium finishes; Mercedes - 18 consecutive podium finishes; Sebastian Vettel - 10 straight points finishes; Renault - 118 races in the points as an engine manufacturer
Fascinating fact: Three times as many victories have come from starting second on the grid than they have from pole - but only once has a driver from outside the front row gone on to triumph.
Time is running out: Sebastian Vettel has just one more opportunity to record his first victory of the year. The last time a defending champion failed to a win a race the following season was Jacques Villeneuve (champion in 1997) in 1998. Ferrari and McLaren likewise have one final chance to record their first victory of the year. Should they fail to do so, it will be the first season since 1980 that neither team has triumphed.
Potential record breaker: Nico Rosberg could capture his 11th pole position of the year in Abu Dhabi. Only six drivers - Sebastian Vettel (with 15), Nigel Mansell (14), Ayrton Senna (13) Alain Prost (13), Michael Schumacher (11) and Mika Hakkinen (11) have claimed 11 or more poles in a single season.
Turbo history: If a Ferrari-powered car wins the race it will be the first Ferrari turbo win since the 1988 Italian Grand Prix.
(source: f1.com)
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