F1. Abu Dhabi 2023 Review

By Aiden McLaughlin, Gavin Huet and Chelsea Wintle

Driver of the day

Aiden – Yuki Tsunoda qualified in P6 and finished in P8, yet he’s my driver of the day – confusing? Tsunoda was one of the few drivers that chose a one stop strategy and ultimately it didn’t work, but there were so many drivers out of position behind him on the starting grid (Alonso, Perez, Hamilton, Sainz to name but four) that he needed to be brave and try something different. Although his tyres faded drastically towards the end of the race, he drove so, so well, taking more points and again beating his team mate Daniel Ricciardo.

Gavin – George Russell gets my vote this week. He qualified 4th and ended up on the podium in 3rd, and secured Mercedes second place in the Constructors championship at the same time. It was probably his best drive of the year and like Lewis Hamilton he will be looking forward to a new car next year, which may be a better car than what they currently have but will it be better than next years Red Bull, only time will tell.

Chelsea – Max Verstappen showed whispers of weakness across the free practice sessions, but like so many other 2023 outings, it was just a tease. He was absolutely dominant. It was a fitting end to the season for the champion, and while I’m a bit over the Dutch national anthem for now, it’s hard to ignore how extraordinary he has been. He finished the season on more than double the points that second-placed Perez, clocked up his 1000th lap led in a season, and so many other records besides. He’s not my favourite but he is amazing.

 

Moment of the weekend

Aiden – Sergio Perez bumping into Lando Norris ended up being so much more. Perez found himself in hot water, being awarded a five second penalty by the stewards. He took the chequered flag in second, but the penalty saw him demoted to fourth, one place behind George Russell who had needed to finish third to secure second place in the Constructors Championship ahead of Ferrari. Red Bull inadvertently helping Mercedes? Who would have thought…

Gavin – In the final few laps we had the bizarre sight of the Red Bull and Ferrari drivers working together to foil the Mercedes plan to secure second in the Constructors championship. With Sergio Perez getting a 5 second penalty, the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc allowed the Red Bull past knowing that his second place was still secure as long as he stayed less than 5 seconds behind Sergio. The idea was that if Sergio could get 5 seconds ahead of the Mercedes of George Russell then Sergio would secure that last podium spot and lessen the haul of points for Mercedes. In the end it didn’t work out that way and George secured third and Mercedes secured second, but the strategic thinking whilst racing is quite something to behold and we have seen it a couple of times this season now.

Chelsea – Franz Tost watched his final race from the Alpha Tauri pit wall this weekend after 18 years with the team. Yuki Tsunoda saw him off in unexpected fashion, by becoming only the second Japanese driver to lead a Grand Prix after Takuma Sato 2004. Amusingly, Tsunoda himself says he wasn’t aware he was leading at the time, which could be seen as coy or disingenuous from other drivers but is absolutely believable from him.

 

Hot take of the weekend

Aiden – Can Guenther Steiner sack himself? Colourful character he may be, but in any other team, the Haas team principal would surely be out on his ear. A terrible season, with little obvious hope for the future.

Gavin – Max Verstappen was unstoppable in the Red Bull all weekend, and all season long. The other teams made changes with some steps forward and some steps backward, but every change Red Bull introduced just seemed to make their car better. That kind of luck will eventually run out, but it has been impressive this year. So it now leaves the other teams with a lot of work to do over their winter break just to catch up, but F1 is a moving target and Red Bull will also be making changes to their car too. I personally hope we can get at least one other team to be close enough to the Red Bulls that we can get some more action and pressure on Max so that he does not romp away again in 2024.

Chelsea – Tiny thing, but when Daniel Ricciardo got stuck due to a visor tear-off flying into his brake ducts, I wondered – how long before this causes a real issue? Is it time to install tiny litter bins in the cockpits? Is there such a thing as a tactical tear-off? The latter question is facetious, but I’m surprised the tear-off issue hasn’t been raised more seriously before, and wonder just what will need to go wrong in order for that to happen.

 

Cold take of the weekend

Aiden – It was pretty disheartening to hear so many drivers and team principals start to concede the 2024 championship already. Managing expectations is one thing and yes, we all know Red Bull started work on next year’s car ages ago, but seriously people, give us all some hope it’ll be competitive next year!

Gavin – Daniel Ricciardo has not been that competitive since coming back into F1, and certainly not since breaking his wrist at Zandvoort. In seven races he only once managed to score points – finishing seventh in Mexico. His teammate Yuki Tsunoda seems to be getting the better of Danny Ric at the moment but maybe this is because Yuki has been in the team longer and has done more time in the simulator and is more settled. Next year will be a big year for Danny Ric if he has plans on getting into the Red Bull team, there will be a new boss at Alpha Tauri alongside a new team name and sponsors, and there can be no excuses about not being prepared.

Chelsea – I’m ready for the break. 23 races is a long season, and with Las Vegas leading a triple header in 2024, I suspect we’ll be even more worn out this time next year. My Christmas wish list is pretty lofty – at the top, a competitive, consistent Ferrari. Failing that I’ll settle for more McLaren podiums and a bit more Fernando up the front – the start of 2023 was so promising. See you in 90 days, pals!

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