Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (2012) RESULT

Did the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix see Red Bull snatch the constructors title, and was it another boring F1 Grand Prix?

We’d hoped that the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix would be a bit more exciting than the last Grand Prix in India. And it was – and then some.

From start to finish there was excitement and incident, culminating in a stunning win for Kimi Raikkonen in the Lotus, the first time the Lotus name has been on the podium in 25 years, and Raikkonen’s first win in his comeback season.

But backtrack to the start, and we saw Hulkenberg’s Force India involved in a first turn collision with Williams’ Bruno Senna – which also saw Paul di Resta pick up a puncture – ending Hulkenberg’s race before its started. The same incident also saw Nico Rosberg needing a new front wing for his Mercedes and putting Grosjean’s Lotus in to the pits.

All that carry on saw Vettel move up three positions after starting in the pit lane, but he managed to knock a lump off his front wing when he was clipped by Senna. Vettel continued, but after the safety car came out when Rosberg hit – and flew over – the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan, Vettel ran in to a polystyrene ‘DRS’ sign trying to avoid the back of Ricciard’s Torro Rosso, further damaging his front wing.

Vettel pitted immediately for a new wing – and new soft tyres – and set about cutting through the field, a filed led by Lewis Hamilton in the McLaren – or at least it was until his McLaren had an electrical failure on lap 20 and dropped out.

After Hamilton went, Webber – having already had a coming together with Pastor Maldonado’s Williams on lap 22 and Massa’s Ferrari soon after – got taken out in a fracas involving Di Resta, Perez and Grosjean and Red Bull decided to bring Vettel back in for more tyres to take him to the end of the race.

Red Bull managed to get Vettel out in fourth place in the midst of the second safety car run (this time from the Webber/di Resta/Perez.Grosjen incident) and, with new tyres, Vettel managed to take Button for third place, putting him behind Alosno who was busy chasing down Raikkonen.

And that’s how it ended, with Raikkonen hanging on in front for his first win since his comeback, and the best pit radio comment, when given advice from his engineer, “Don’t worry – I know what I’m doing”, followed by a typically laconic response to Coulthard’s podium interview, when asked what he felt about his win, “Not much really”.

A genuinely thrilling race in Abu Dhabi, topped only by Kimi’s comments and his win.

If only all Grands Prix could be like this.

By Cars UK