2022 F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Preview

The final round of the 2022 F1 World Championship will be held this weekend in Abu Dhabi. Even though Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen was crowned champion at the previous round in Japan, the battle for second place is still on.

Sergio Perez, also of Red Bull, and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari both enter the final round with 290 points. Depending on the outcome of the race, either Ferrari or Mercedes-Benz AMG could finish second in the constructors' championship.

Abu Dhabi is where Verstappen won his controversial first title a year ago. The race is held annually at the Yas Marina Circuit, and the Hermann Tilke-designed circuit is one of the newer circuits, having opened in 2009.

The course layout is 3.23 miles long and consists of 16 corners and several high-speed sections. From the first corner, a series of flowing curves expose the cars and drivers to lateral acceleration of up to 4G and speeds in excess of 155 mph. The middle section has two very long straights, and the final section is a tight, twisty track that puts a lot of stress on the tires.

Pirelli has named C3 white hard, C4 yellow medium, and C5 red soft.

The weather forecast calls for dry and warm conditions throughout the weekend. However, as with other races in the Middle East, the Abu Dhabi race will be held at twilight and into the night to avoid the daytime heat.

Heading into tomorrow's qualifying and Sunday's race, Verstappen has 429 points in the drivers' championship. While Leclerc and Perez both have 290 points, Leclerc is currently in second place due to his more wins this season. In the constructors' championship, Red Bull has 719 points compared to Ferrari's 524 and Mercedes' 505.

This year, Formula One also said goodbye to Aston Martin's Sebastian Vettel, the four-time world champion announcing in July his plans to retire from Formula One at the end of this season, ending his career through 2007.