The race marked the 16th time the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was held at the Yas Marina Circuit. Entering the weekend, Max Verstappen had already clinched the Drivers' Championship at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, holding 429 points. Lando Norris sat in second with 349 points, followed by Charles Leclerc with 341 points.
In the Constructors' Championship, McLaren led with 640 points, followed by Ferrari with 619 points and Red Bull Racing with 581 points. To secure the title, Ferrari needed to outscore McLaren by at least 22 points, or 21 points if they won the race. Red Bull Racing had been eliminated from title contention in the previous round in Qatar.
The driver lineup featured several changes and notable final appearances. Jack Doohan made his Formula One debut for Alpine, replacing Esteban Ocon. Franco Colapinto continued in the Williams seat he had occupied since the Italian Grand Prix, and Liam Lawson competed for RB following his replacement of Daniel Ricciardo earlier in the season.
The event was the final race for several long-standing driver-team pairings and careers:
Lewis Hamilton completed his final start for Mercedes before a 2025 move to Ferrari, ending the most successful partnership in the sport's history.
Carlos Sainz Jr. made his last start for Ferrari before moving to Williams.
Sergio Pérez made his final appearance for Red Bull Racing.
Kevin Magnussen competed in his final career race for Haas.
Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu completed their final races for Kick Sauber.
Six teams fielded alternate drivers during the first practice session to meet rookie requirements: Luke Browning (Williams), Isack Hadjar (Red Bull Racing), Felipe Drugovich (Aston Martin), Ryō Hirakawa (McLaren), Ayumu Iwasa (RB), and Arthur Leclerc (Ferrari).
Lando Norris took pole position for McLaren. The qualifying order was affected by several grid penalties: Charles Leclerc received a ten-place penalty for a third energy store, while Alexander Albon and Franco Colapinto received five-place penalties for gearbox changes. Nico Hülkenberg was handed a three-place penalty for an infraction in the pit exit tunnel during Q1.
At the start, Lando Norris maintained his lead. Behind him, Max Verstappen tagged Oscar Piastri into a spin at Turn 1, an incident for which Verstappen received a ten-second time penalty. Simultaneously, Valtteri Bottas spun Sergio Pérez; Pérez subsequently retired from his final race for Red Bull Racing due to a loss of drive after hitting a kerb.
Charles Leclerc, starting 19th after his penalty, advanced to eighth by the end of the first lap. By lap 10, he had overtaken both Nico Hülkenberg and Fernando Alonso. On lap 24, Liam Lawson suffered a pit stop delay when the jack was dropped before his front-left tyre was secured. On lap 31, Bottas was involved in another incident, spinning Kevin Magnussen at the same corner where he had collided with Pérez. This resulted in a puncture and front wing damage for Bottas.
In the closing stages, Oscar Piastri recovered from his early spin to overtake Alexander Albon for tenth place on lap 54. On the final lap, Lewis Hamilton battled teammate George Russell for fourth position, successfully passing him on the outside of Turn 9 to finish his Mercedes tenure.
Lando Norris took the victory, followed by Carlos Sainz Jr. in second and Charles Leclerc in third.
McLaren's victory ended a 26-year drought for the World Constructors' Championship, their first since 1998. The race concluded the 2024 season with Max Verstappen as the Drivers' Champion and McLaren as the Constructors' Champions. The event also marked the conclusion of several careers and tenures, most notably Lewis Hamilton's 12-season stint at Mercedes and Kevin Magnussen's career in Formula One.
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