Red Bull’s Max Verstappen converted pole position into victory at the 2023 season ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday, November 26, making it 19 wins out of 22 races in an extraordinary year for the flying Dutchman.
Verstappen defended against Charles Leclerc going into the first corner and throughout the first lap before pulling away in the Red Bull rocket ship that has served him so well this season. The second Red Bull of Sergio Perez crossed the line in second place but a five-second time penalty for a clash with McLaren’s Lando Norris demoted the Mexican to fourth place after the race.
This development promoted Leclerc to second place and Mercedes’ George Russell up to third place in the end, while Norris had to settle for fifth place after his run in with Perez.
Leclerc had been second on the road until the closing laps when he decided to let Perez pass him and try to generate enough of a gap between the Red Bulls and Russell to boost the Scuderia’s chances of beating Mercedes to second in the constructors’ standings, but it was not to be.
Despite the Monegasque’s best efforts, Ferrari finished their season in third place in the constructors standings, just three points behind Mercedes in second place with 409 points. Meanwhile, an imperious Red Bull finished their record breaking season with a colossal 860 points.
Verstappen already won the world championship several races back, leaving a fight for second place in his rear view mirror, which was claimed by his teammate, Perez with 285 points.
Lewis Hamilton contributed to Mercedes’ second place finish with consistently strong performances throughout the season, leaving him in third place in the drivers standings ahead of his former teammate Fernando Alonso in fourth place with 206 points.
Leclerc also concluded his season with 206 points, but had two less podium finishes than the Spaniard and therefore takes fifth place at the end of another difficult year in red.
That’s a wrap on another season of Formula 1, leaving 94 days until the 2024 season opening Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday, March 2, wherein Red Bull will be looking to defend their titles from rival teams which will no doubt be busy preparing their challengers for another year of racing at the pinnacle of motorsport.
Featured image: @ScuderiaFerrari on X
