2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Sebastian Vettel won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and became Formula 1’s youngest world champion. Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button completed the podium as Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber became trapped behind traffic after early stops.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:39.394
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Fastest-lap time	1:41.274 on lap 47
First	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Second	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Third	Jenson Button	McLaren

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
12 November 2010	Practice 1	13:00 – 14:30
12 November 2010	Practice 2	17:00 – 18:30
13 November 2010	Practice 3	14:00 – 15:00
13 November 2010	Qualifying	17:00
14 November 2010	Race	17:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Fernando Alonso arrived at round 19 leading the 2010 F1 World Championship on 246 points, with Mark Webber on 238. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 469 points.

Race entries

The 12 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Fairuz Fauzy also took part in practice.

Free Practice

An unexpected downpour before FP1 left a damp but drying circuit for the championship finale’s opening runs. Sebastian Vettel adapted best as conditions improved, leading Lewis Hamilton comfortably. The changing surface made the first session less straightforward than anticipated and delayed the teams’ opportunity to work in consistently dry conditions.

Lewis Hamilton moved ahead in the cooler evening FP2, with Sebastian Vettel his closest challenger and Fernando Alonso next. The session’s timing made it a more useful reference for the evening qualifying and twilight race than Saturday’s hotter practice would be. Mark Webber followed Fernando Alonso as all four title contenders continued their final preparations.

Track temperatures climbed markedly for FP3, creating different conditions from Friday’s running. Sebastian Vettel narrowly led Mark Webber as Red Bull returned to the front, with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso following. Teams therefore had to judge their afternoon performance with care before qualifying on a cooling circuit later in the day.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP1, 12 November 2010

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:42.760	18
2	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.609s	16
3	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.025s	19
4	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.080s	19
5	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	+1.320s	19
6	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+1.361s	17
7	3	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.439s	19
8	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.844s	18
9	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.958s	19
10	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	+1.977s	19
11	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+2.400s	18
12	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+2.685s	21
13	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.714s	15
14	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+2.792s	20
15	15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India	+2.825s	14
16	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+3.243s	20
17	10	Nico Hulkenberg	Williams	+3.884s	19
18	16	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+4.345s	22
19	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+5.690s	19
20	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	+5.712s	17
21	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	+6.615s	13
22	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	+6.830s	18
23	20	Christian Klien	HRT	+7.514s	17
24	19	Fairuz Fauzy	Lotus Racing	+8.945s	18

Free Practice 2 Classification

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP2, 12 November 2010

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:40.888	25
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.257s	28
3	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.426s	29
4	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.427s	29
5	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	+0.688s	31
6	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.695s	21
7	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.208s	31
8	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.244s	28
9	15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India	+1.315s	31
10	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.334s	29
11	3	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.358s	29
12	10	Nico Hulkenberg	Williams	+1.561s	32
13	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.647s	21
14	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.880s	26
15	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.026s	37
16	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	+2.062s	34
17	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.240s	17
18	16	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+2.696s	33
19	19	Heikki Kovalainen	Lotus Racing	+4.292s	36
20	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+4.371s	31
21	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	+4.724s	35
22	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	+5.165s	29
23	20	Christian Klien	HRT	+6.322s	32
24	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	+6.546s	28

Free Practice 3 Classification

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP3, 13 November 2010

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:40.696	18
2	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.133s	15
3	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.584s	13
4	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.794s	14
5	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.882s	17
6	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+0.993s	17
7	3	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.994s	18
8	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.033s	17
9	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	+1.181s	18
10	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	+1.197s	20
11	10	Nico Hulkenberg	Williams	+1.238s	18
12	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.282s	14
13	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+1.620s	15
14	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.870s	16
15	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.891s	18
16	15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India	+2.162s	14
17	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.297s	20
18	16	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+2.648s	18
19	19	Heikki Kovalainen	Lotus Racing	+4.180s	15
20	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	+4.352s	23
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+4.354s	20
22	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	+4.794s	16
23	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	+4.933s	22
24	20	Christian Klien	HRT	+5.768s	17

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Lewis Hamilton second and Fernando Alonso third.

Sebastian Vettel took pole ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. Jenson Button qualified fourth, with Mark Webber fifth, leaving all four title contenders in the first three rows.

Qualifying Classification

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Qualifying, 13 November 2010

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:40.318	1:39.874	1:39.394	17
2	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:40.335	1:40.119	1:39.425	19
3	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:40.170	1:40.311	1:39.792	21
4	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:40.877	1:40.014	1:39.823	23
5	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:40.690	1:40.074	1:39.925	20
6	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:40.942	1:40.323	1:40.202	19
7	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	1:40.904	1:40.476	1:40.203	26
8	3	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:41.222	1:40.452	1:40.516	20
9	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:40.231	1:40.060	1:40.589	25
10	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	1:41.018	1:40.658	1:40.901	21
11	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	1:41.336	1:40.780	—	13
12	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:41.045	1:40.783	—	14
13	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:41.473	1:40.914	—	18
14	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	1:41.409	1:41.113	—	17
15	10	Nico Hülkenberg	Williams	1:41.015	1:41.418	—	18
16	15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India	1:41.681	1:41.642	—	18
17	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	1:41.707	1:41.738	—	18
18	16	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:41.824	—	—	11
19	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	1:43.516	—	—	11
20	19	Heikki Kovalainen	Lotus Racing	1:43.712	—	—	11
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	1:44.095	—	—	10
22	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	1:44.510	—	—	9
23	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	1:45.085	—	—	10
24	20	Christian Klien	HRT	1:45.296	—	—	10

What happened in the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?

Vettel held the lead while Button passed Alonso for third. Schumacher spun and was struck by Liuzzi, bringing out the safety car and allowing Rosberg and Petrov to make early tyre stops.

Webber stopped after struggling on his opening tyres, and Ferrari brought Alonso in shortly afterwards to cover him. Both rejoined behind Petrov, who had already made his required stop and proved impossible to pass.

Vettel retained the advantage through the stops while Hamilton was delayed behind the long-running Kubica. Button also extended his first stint, then rejoined in position to complete the podium.

Vettel won ahead of Hamilton and Button. Alonso finished seventh behind Petrov, with Webber eighth, giving Vettel the championship by four points. He had not led the standings before the final race, but secured the title at the decisive moment.

Further down the points places, Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Jaime Alguersuari and Felipe Massa completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2010 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 256 points, followed by Fernando Alonso on 252. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 498, with McLaren on 454.

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race results

The 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was held on 14 November 2010, with a scheduled start of 17:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	55	1:39:36.837	25
2	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	55	+10.162	18
3	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	55	+11.047	15
4	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	55	+30.747	12
5	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	55	+39.026	10
6	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	55	+43.520	8
7	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	55	+43.797	6
8	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	55	+44.243	4
9	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	55	+50.201	2
10	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	55	+50.868	1
11	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	55	+51.551	0
12	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	55	+57.686	0
13	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	55	+58.325	0
14	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	55	+59.558	0
15	16	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	55	+1:03.178	0
16	10	Nico Hülkenberg	Williams	55	+1:04.763	0
17	19	Heikki Kovalainen	Lotus Racing	54	+1 Lap	0
18	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	53	+2 Laps	0
19	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	53	+2 Laps	0
20	20	Christian Klien	HRT	53	+2 Laps	0
21	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	51	Rear Wing	0
Ret	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	43	Gearbox	0
Ret	3	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	0	Collision	0
Ret	15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India	0	Collision	0

Jarno Trulli retired from the race, but was classified as he completed more than 90% of the race distance.

2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	47	1:41.274	197.428
2	1	Jenson Button	McLaren	48	1:41.636	196.725
3	4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	52	1:41.711	196.580
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	50	1:41.739	196.526
5	11	Robert Kubica	Renault	51	1:41.753	196.499
6	6	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	52	1:42.196	195.647
7	8	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	52	1:42.227	195.588
8	12	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	52	1:42.311	195.427
9	10	Nico Hulkenberg	Williams	51	1:42.397	195.263
10	16	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	50	1:42.573	194.928
11	9	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	50	1:42.669	194.746
12	22	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber	52	1:42.673	194.738
13	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	52	1:42.695	194.696
14	7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	52	1:42.725	194.640
15	17	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	49	1:42.727	194.636
16	23	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	53	1:42.733	194.624
17	19	Heikki Kovalainen	Lotus Racing	52	1:45.378	189.739
18	18	Jarno Trulli	Lotus Racing	42	1:45.979	188.663
19	25	Lucas di Grassi	Virgin Racing	50	1:46.126	188.402
20	21	Bruno Senna	HRT	52	1:46.255	188.173
21	20	Christian Klien	HRT	44	1:46.646	187.483
22	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	39	1:46.837	187.148

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2010 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

2010 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	256
2	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	252
3	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	242
4	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	240
5	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	214
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	144
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	142
8	Robert Kubica	Polish	Renault	136
9	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	72
10	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Williams	47
11	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	47
12	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	32
13	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Renault	27
14	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Williams	22
15	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian	Force India	21
16	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	8
17	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish	Sauber	6
18	Nick Heidfeld	German	Sauber	6
19	Jaime Alguersuari	Spanish	Toro Rosso	5
20	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Lotus Racing	0
21	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Lotus Racing	0
22	Karun Chandhok	Indian	HRT	0
23	Bruno Senna	Brazilian	HRT	0
24	Lucas di Grassi	Brazilian	Virgin Racing	0
25	Timo Glock	German	Virgin Racing	0
26	Sakon Yamamoto	Japanese	HRT	0
27	Christian Klien	Austrian	HRT	0

2010 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	498
2	McLaren	454
3	Ferrari	396
4	Mercedes	214
5	Renault	163
6	Williams	69
7	Force India	68
8	Sauber	44
9	Toro Rosso	13
10	Lotus Racing	0
11	HRT	0
12	Virgin Racing	0

2010 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2010 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	14 March
2	2010 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	28 March
3	2010 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	4 April
4	2010 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	18 April
5	2010 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	9 May
6	2010 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	16 May
7	2010 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	30 May
8	2010 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	13 June
9	2010 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	27 June
10	2010 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	11 July
11	2010 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	25 July
12	2010 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	1 August
13	2010 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	29 August
14	2010 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	12 September
15	2010 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	26 September
16	2010 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	10 October
17	2010 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	24 October
18	2010 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	7 November
19	2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	14 November