Max Verstappen Roars To Abu Dhabi GP Pole As Mercedes Tamed In Final F1 Quali

In what was a tremendous surprise for all F1 viewers, Max Verstappen grabbed pole position in the Abu Dhabi GP. Valtteri Bottas joins him on the front row, with Lewis Hamilton taking P3 in the session.

The Yas Marina Circuit looked pleasant as ever in the practice sessions, with a few tricky turns and corners grabbing attention ahead of the race. It was no different in the all-important qualifying session either.

The first phase of qualifying ensured no major surprises, other than the usual suspects from Haas and Williams getting eliminated. Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen also failed to go above the cut-off point of P15 and ended up getting knocked out in Q1.

Sebastian Vettel qualified in P13 in his farewell race with Ferrari

Both AlphaTauri cars started strong in the Q2 session, with Gasly and Kvyat putting in flying laps to go in the top half positions temporarily. However, with the other cars on relatively slow pace, the pair made it to the final Q3 session, eventually.

Ferrari also showed signs of promise, but it was a case of contrasting fortunes for Leclerc and Vettel. The German, in his final race with the team, could not get the car up to a decent level of pace, and ultimately, qualified in just P13.

The most shocking occurrence in Q2, however, was for Renault as both drivers crashed out. It now puts the French team in a difficult position; even more so as they had an outside chance to secure P3 in the Constructors’ standings.

Max Verstappen secured pole with a flying lap in the season finale F1 qualifying of 2020

Going into qualifying, there was hope for Red Bull Racing as they matched Mercedes for sheer pace. Eventually, it paid off, as Verstappen came out strongest in the sprint lap shootout.

Bottas ensured he joined Max on the front row with a good lap himself. The Finn needed a good showing after disappointment in Sakhir. And he duly delivered, with a start from P2 in the race tomorrow for him.

Red Bull enjoyed a good qualifying session themselves as they look to fight defending champions Mercedes in the last race. Max’s teammate Alex Albon secured P5 and will look to challenge the contenders ahead of him.

Elsewhere, McLaren received a big boost in their fight for P3 supremacy. Both Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz looked sharp with serious race pace and could achieve serious points finishes.

Although the title races have been decided, there is still a lot to play for in F1. As we approach the season end of 2020, it sure seems like an enthralling race could be on the cards in Abu Dhabi.