Lewis Hamilton became a two-time World Champion on Sunday as he secured victory at the 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to claim the full 50 points on offer.
The Mercedes driver started the race in second but capitalised immediately with a great start to jump team-mate Nico Rosberg before they’d even reached turn one.
Throughout the race Rosberg kept Hamilton fairly honest, never dropping more than four seconds behind, however trouble struck the German after 30 or so laps when his ERS failed and he began to lose ground quickly, eventually dropping to 14th come the final lap.
It was Felipe Massa who capitalised on Rosberg’s troubles to take second on the podium, though he looked set to battle Hamilton for the lead but eventually finished two seconds adrift.
The second Williams of Valtteri Bottas was third to hand the Grove outfit their first double-podium since 2005 and to secure them third in the championship ahead of Ferrari as well as securing fourth for Bottas in the Drivers’ title.
Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo may have had the drive of the race as he came through the pack after starting from the pit lane to finish fourth, just missing out on a podium.
Jenson Button came home fifth to secure McLaren’s place in the championship ahead of Force India whose drivers came in sixth and seventh ahead of Sebastian Vettel and the Ferrari pairing.
Race Result – 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix:
| # | Driver | Team | Gap | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 50 | |
| 02 | Felipe Massa | Williams | +2.5 | 36 |
| 03 | Valtteri Bottas | Williams | +28.8 | 30 |
| 04 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | +37.2 | 24 |
| 05 | Jenson Button | McLaren | +60.3 | 20 |
| 06 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India | +62.1 | 16 |
| 07 | Sergio Perez | Force India | +71.0 | 12 |
| 08 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull | +72.0 | 8 |
| 09 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | +85.8 | 4 |
| 10 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | +87.8 | 2 |
| 11 | Kevin Magnussen | McLaren | +90.3 | |
| 12 | Jean-Eric Vergne | Toro Rosso | +91.9 | |
| 13 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus | +1 Lap | |
| 14 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | +1 Lap | |
| 15 | Esteban Gutierrez | Sauber | +1 Lap | |
| 16 | Adrian Sutil | Sauber | +1 Lap | |
| 17 | Will Stevens | Caterham | +1 Lap | |
| 18 | Kamui Kobayashi | Caterham | Retired | |
| 19 | Pastor Maldonado | Lotus | Retired | |
| 20 | Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso | Retired |
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