2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Nico Rosberg closed the season with a third consecutive victory in Abu Dhabi. Lewis Hamilton tried an extended middle stint but could not overturn the order, while Kimi Räikkönen completed the podium for Ferrari.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Pole time	1:40.237
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Fastest-lap time	1:44.517 on lap 44
First	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Second	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Third	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
27 November 2015	Practice 1	13:00 – 14:30
27 November 2015	Practice 2	17:00 – 18:30
28 November 2015	Practice 3	14:00 – 15:00
28 November 2015	Qualifying	17:00
29 November 2015	Race	17:00

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

Championship background

Lewis Hamilton arrived at round 19 leading the 2015 F1 World Championship on 363 points, with Nico Rosberg on 297. Mercedes headed the constructors’ standings with 660 points.

Race entries

Roberto Merhi raced for Manor Marussia, replacing Alexander Rossi. Jolyon Palmer also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Lewis Hamilton opened the finale fastest in sunny FP1, while a late mistake prevented Nico Rosberg from improving his challenge. Daniel Ricciardo reverted to an older specification Renault engine after disappointment with the upgrade in Brazil. Jolyon Palmer’s Lotus outing was heavily restricted by a water leak, leaving him with only nine laps.

Nico Rosberg reversed the Mercedes order in FP2 as the evening session offered more representative conditions. Sergio Pérez impressed in third but lost the final part of practice to brake trouble. Carlos Sainz was also forced to stop, while Fernando Alonso’s ninth place, within a second of Nico Rosberg, gave McLaren a more encouraging result.

Nico Rosberg stayed ahead in FP3 while Lewis Hamilton struggled to complete a clean quick lap, encountering traffic and making mistakes at Turn 5. Sebastian Vettel finished close behind Lewis Hamilton, with Sergio Perez again prominent. Daniil Kvyat had no opportunity to join the contest: an electrical problem kept his Red Bull from recording a time.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP1, 27 November 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:43.754	28
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.141s	32
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.746s	27
4	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	+0.948s	23
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.988s	23
6	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.997s	22
7	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.139s	26
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.180s	27
9	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+1.560s	29
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.679s	20
11	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.849s	22
12	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+1.964s	32
13	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.019s	15
14	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.111s	20
15	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.361s	20
16	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+2.466s	21
17	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.653s	29
18	30	Jolyon Palmer	Lotus F1	+2.747s	9
19	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+5.082s	19
20	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+6.134s	20

Free Practice 2 Classification

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP2, 27 November 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:41.983	39
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.138s	31
3	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+0.627s	23
4	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.664s	37
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.734s	35
6	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	+0.815s	34
7	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.866s	36
8	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.945s	35
9	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+0.972s	31
10	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+1.448s	37
11	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.458s	32
12	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.523s	33
13	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+1.679s	40
14	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+1.871s	20
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+1.946s	27
16	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.067s	32
17	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.133s	37
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+3.262s	28
19	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+4.467s	35
20	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+5.039s	27

Free Practice 3 Classification

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP3, 28 November 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:41.856	20
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.281s	20
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.329s	20
4	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+0.592s	18
5	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.771s	18
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.870s	15
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.003s	18
8	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.317s	24
9	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.383s	19
10	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+1.573s	22
11	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.652s	15
12	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+1.824s	18
13	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+1.862s	24
14	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	+1.970s	19
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+2.072s	21
16	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.158s	13
17	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.469s	21
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	+5.427s	16
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	+5.664s	17
20	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	No time	2

Qualifying

Nico Rosberg headed qualifying for Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton second and Kimi Räikkönen third.

Nico Rosberg took his sixth consecutive pole, ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Räikkönen. Sebastian Vettel was eliminated in Q1 after Ferrari misjudged the pace needed to progress, setting up a recovery race from the rear of the midfield.

Qualifying Classification

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Qualifying, 28 November 2015

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:41.111	1:40.979	1:40.237	12
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:40.974	1:40.758	1:40.614	12
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:42.500	1:41.612	1:41.051	14
4	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1:41.983	1:41.560	1:41.184	18
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:42.275	1:41.830	1:41.444	17
6	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:42.608	1:41.868	1:41.656	19
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:41.996	1:41.925	1:41.686	15
8	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:42.303	1:42.349	1:41.759	20
9	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	1:42.540	1:42.328	1:41.933	22
10	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1:42.911	1:42.482	1:42.708	17
11	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	1:42.889	1:42.521	—	14
12	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:42.570	1:42.668	—	12
13	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	1:42.929	1:42.807	—	13
14	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:42.896	1:43.614	—	14
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:42.585	no time	—	11
16	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:42.941	—	—	7
17	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:43.187	—	—	5
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:43.838	—	—	7
19	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	1:46.297	—	—	7
20	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	1:47.434	—	—	8

Romain Grosjean received a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Will Stevens received a five-place grid penalty for a change of his Control Electronics unit.

Roberto Merhi started the race from pit lane after the team took his car out of parc fermé to alter his suspension set-up.

What happened in the 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?

Rosberg retained the lead at the start as Hamilton kept Räikkönen and Sergio Pérez behind him. Contact further back eliminated Pastor Maldonado and left Fernando Alonso needing repairs and later serving a penalty.

Rosberg built a gap, while Vettel extended his opening stint to climb through the order. Valtteri Bottas damaged his front wing when released into Jenson Button‘s path in the pit lane, compromising the Williams driver’s race.

Hamilton stayed out longer before his final stop, hoping fresher tyres would provide a late opportunity. He rejoined behind Rosberg and closed the gap, but never recovered enough time to challenge for the lead.

Räikkönen finished third ahead of Vettel and Pérez, with Daniel Ricciardo sixth. Romain Grosjean passed cars late to finish ninth in his final Lotus race. Mercedes ended the season with another one-two, while Hamilton remained the champion.

Further down the points places, Nico Hülkenberg, Felipe Massa, Romain Grosjean and Daniil Kvyat completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2015 rules.

After the race, Lewis Hamilton headed the drivers’ standings with 381 points, followed by Nico Rosberg on 322. Mercedes led the constructors’ table on 703, with Ferrari on 428.

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race results

The 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was held on 29 November 2015, with a scheduled start of 17:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	55	1:38:30.175	25
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	55	+8.271	18
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	55	+19.430	15
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	55	+43.735	12
5	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	55	+1:03.952	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	55	+1:05.010	8
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	55	+1:33.618	6
8	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	55	+1:37.751	4
9	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	55	+1:38.201	2
10	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	55	+1:42.371	1
11	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	55	+1:43.525	0
12	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	54	+1 Lap	0
13	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	54	+1 Lap	0
14	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	54	+1 Lap	0
15	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	54	+1 Lap	0
16	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	54	+1 Lap	0
17	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	53	+2 Laps	0
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	53	+2 Laps	0
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	52	+3 Laps	0
Ret	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	0	Collision	0

Max Verstappen originally finished twelfth, but received a five-second time penalty for overtaking Jenson Button outside track limits and another twenty-second penalty for ignoring blue flags while being lapped.

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	44	18:22:46	1:44.517	191.302
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	48	18:30:23	1:44.550	191.242
3	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	52	18:40:55	1:44.796	190.793
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	47	18:28:11	1:44.942	190.528
5	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	37	18:10:15	1:45.356	189.779
6	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	40	18:17:12	1:45.746	189.079
7	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	47	18:29:26	1:45.859	188.877
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	30	17:58:30	1:45.892	188.818
9	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	46	18:27:03	1:46.305	188.085
10	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	46	18:28:19	1:46.424	187.874
11	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	45	18:26:14	1:46.464	187.804
12	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	48	18:31:52	1:46.517	187.710
13	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	27	17:53:22	1:46.882	187.069
14	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	33	18:04:07	1:46.984	186.891
15	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	38	18:13:13	1:46.998	186.867
16	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	29	17:56:55	1:47.064	186.751
17	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	29	17:57:18	1:47.509	185.978
18	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	53	18:43:26	1:49.610	182.414
19	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	26	17:53:35	1:51.213	179.784

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

2015 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

2015 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Lewis Hamilton	British	Mercedes	381
2	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	322
3	Sebastian Vettel	German	Ferrari	278
4	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	150
5	Valtteri Bottas	Finnish	Williams	136
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Williams	121
7	Daniil Kvyat	Russian	Red Bull Racing	95
8	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Red Bull Racing	92
9	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Force India	78
10	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	58
11	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	51
12	Max Verstappen	Dutch	Toro Rosso	49
13	Felipe Nasr	Brazilian	Sauber	27
14	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Lotus F1	27
15	Carlos Sainz	Spanish	Toro Rosso	18
16	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	16
17	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	McLaren	11
18	Marcus Ericsson	Swedish	Sauber	9
19	Roberto Merhi	Spanish	Manor Marussia	0
20	Alexander Rossi	American	Manor Marussia	0
21	Will Stevens	British	Manor Marussia	0
–	Kevin Magnussen	Danish	McLaren	0

2015 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	703
2	Ferrari	428
3	Williams	257
4	Red Bull Racing	187
5	Force India	136
6	Lotus F1	78
7	Toro Rosso	67
8	Sauber	36
9	McLaren	27
10	Manor Marussia	0

2015 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2015 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	15 March
2	2015 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	29 March
3	2015 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	12 April
4	2015 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	19 April
5	2015 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	10 May
6	2015 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	24 May
7	2015 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	7 June
8	2015 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	21 June
9	2015 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	5 July
10	2015 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	26 July
11	2015 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	23 August
12	2015 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	6 September
13	2015 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	20 September
14	2015 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	27 September
15	2015 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	11 October
16	2015 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	25 October
17	2015 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	1 November
18	2015 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	15 November
19	2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	29 November