2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Race 21 of 21 in the 2016 Formula One World Championship
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Race details[1]
Date 27 November 2016 (2016-11-27)
Official name 2016 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Location Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 5.554 km (3.451 miles)
Distance 55 laps, 305.470 km (189.810 miles)
Weather Sunny
Attendance 195,000 (Weekend)
Pole position
Driver Mercedes
Time 1:38.755
Fastest lap
Driver Germany Sebastian Vettel Ferrari
Time 1:43.729 on lap 43
Podium
First Mercedes
Second Mercedes
Third Ferrari
Lap leaders

The 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (officially known as the 2016 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 27 November 2016 at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The race was the twenty-first and final round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship and determined the 2016 World Drivers' Championship. It marked the eighth running of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the eighth time that the race had been run as a World Championship event since the inaugural race in 2009.

The previous year's race winner Nico Rosberg entered the round with a twelve-point lead over his teammate Lewis Hamilton in the World Drivers' Championship. Their team, Mercedes, held a lead of two hundred and seventy-six points over Red Bull Racing in the World Constructors' Championship. Rosberg required a podium finish to secure the championship; Hamilton required a podium to remain in mathematical contention. Hamilton started the race from pole and went on to win the race, while Rosberg finished second, securing his only World Drivers' Championship title. Sebastian Vettel completed the podium in third.[2]

A week after the Grand Prix, Rosberg announced his retirement from Formula One, making this Grand Prix his last.[3] This was also the last Grand Prix for the Manor team, as the team folded before the start of the 2017 season, reducing the grid to 20 drivers. As well as being Rosberg's last Grand Prix, this would also prove to be the last Grand Prix for Esteban Gutiérrez and Felipe Nasr. This was expected to be the final Grand Prix for Jenson Button though he would later deputise for Fernando Alonso at the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix.

  1. ^ "Abu Dhabi". formula1.com. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
  2. ^ Benson, Andrew (27 November 2016). "Nico Rosberg wins F1 title as Lewis Hamilton wins in Abu Dhabi". BBC Sport. Abu Dhabi: BBC. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  3. ^ "Nico Rosberg retires: World champion quits Formula 1 five days after title win". BBC Sport. 2 December 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2016.