Welcome to Total-Motorsport.com’s live coverage of the 2024 Abu Dhabi GP, the spectacular finale to an unforgettable F1 season, set against the stunning twilight backdrop of the Yas Marina Circuit as it transitions to bright night lights.
This weekend promises high-stakes drama, as championship ambitions collide with the allure of motorsport’s most picturesque venue and the stage is set for a thrilling showdown as McLaren closes in on a momentous milestone, poised to claim their first Constructors’ Championship since 1998.
In qualifying, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri delivered a scintillating 1-2 finish, their impeccable teamwork providing a masterclass in precision and pace. Norris led the charge with a blistering 1:22.595, just ahead of Piastri, while Ferrari’s lone representative, Carlos Sainz, narrowly missed out in third.
With Charles Leclerc demoted by a grid penalty, Ferrari faces an uphill battle to overturn McLaren’s commanding lead, and elsewhere, Max Verstappen, already crowned Drivers’ Champion, relinquished a surprise shot at pole and Nico Hulkenberg stunned the paddock with a career-best fourth for Haas but dropped to seventh after a penalty.
Mercedes endured a dismal outing as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell failed to threaten the leaders, particularly the 39-year-old who had good pace in his final weekend with his team before being struck with rotten luck. Valtteri Bottas outshone expectations, positioning Sauber for a potential points finish in his swansong.
So with McLaren on the brink of glory and Ferrari still chasing history, the stakes couldn’t be higher as all eyes turn to Sunday’s race, where every lap will carry the weight of an extraordinary season. Stay tuned with Total-Motorsport.com for all the live action from the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP!
More from the Singapore GP
Catch up with Total Motorsport's latest Singapore GP coverage, including Max Verstappen's victory at Marina Bay, Ferrari's costly strategy gamble, the full race classification, and the updated 2026 Formula 1 Drivers' and Constructors' Championship standings.
F1 LIVE 2024 Abu Dhabi GP – News, Updates and Reaction
Doughnuts from Hamilton on the start-finish straight
It’s the end of an era for Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes as they go separate ways and they celebrate in style with some doughnuts on the start-finish straight to sign off their journey together.
It was old school Hamilton in the Abu Dhabi GP as he charged through the field on the alternate strategy and overtook his own teammate on the final lap to finish fourth in Yas Marina.
Lap 58/58: Lando Norris wins Abu Dhabi GP as McLaren becomes constructors’ champions
Lando Norris was never challenged in this F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP as he comes home to take the chequered flag before anyone else and delivers the constructors’ championship to McLaren for the first time since 1998!
He led home Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in a valiant effort by the Ferrari team as they just came up short and there’s no hard feelings as the two garages celebrate their successes from this thrilling F1 2024 season together.
Lap 56/58: Gap at 1.1 between Russell and Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton’s now onto the gearbox of his Mercedes colleague as he bids for fourth place.
Will the older Brit overtake his younger teammate in the dying embers of the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP?
Lap 54/58: Hamilton now 3.2 behind Russell
Lewis Hamilton might get a couple of laps to have a run at George Russell in the sister Mercedes before he signs off to join Ferrari.
This is similar to the Belgian GP at the moment, but without a Grand Prix victory involved.
Lap 53/58: Momentary scare for Sainz
Carlos Sainz suspects he has a puncture after running over some debris, but there’s nothing coming of that and he seems completely fine as he continues on.
The Spaniard is 6.7 behind Lando Norris and 22.4 ahead of Charles Leclerc, he will settle for the podium now.
Lap 50/58: Hamilton 7s behind Russell
Lewis Hamilton is catching George Russell hand over fist as things stand and we will see the Silver Arrows trade blows in the final dance for the seven-time world champion before he goes to Ferrari.
Could he even catch Charles Leclerc for the podium? That’s a long shot really.
Lap 46/58: Norris on course for Abu Dhabi GP win
Lando Norris is now 5.5 seconds ahead of Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and seems destined to win the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
That victory will hand McLaren the constructors’ championship for the first time since the 1998 season, before their drivers were even born.
Lap 42/58: Hamilton up to fifth
Lewis Hamilton effortlessly moves by Pierre Gasly for fifth. Next up the road is George Russell in the sister Mercedes.
The 39-year-old needs to make up 14 seconds to catch his colleague, and then a further four if he wants to take the podium off Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari.
Lap 40/58: McLaren covering off their contingencies
McLaren ask Lando Norris if he thinks he could pass Carlos Sainz on new tyres if the Ferrari stays out and the Brit responds with the affirmative.
They’re covering off safety cars rather than a two-stop strategy.
Lewis Hamilton slips by Nico Hulkenberg for sixth-place as he chases down a podium on the medium tyres. Next up the road is Pierre Gasly’s Alpine.
Lap 37/58: Norris leads by 3.2 seconds
Lando Norris is doing exactly what McLaren need him to do as he leads Carlos Sainz by 3.2 seconds at the Abu Dhabi GP.
If McLaren win this race, they win the constructors’ championship and besides Sainz, they have a 19-second gap to the next car behind them.
Lap 35/58: Bono: It’s Hammertime
For one final time, Peter Bonnington tells Lewis Hamilton it’s Hammertime as the seven-time world champion comes into the pits for new tyres.
He comes out just ahead of Fernando Alonso in seventh and is now tasked with a charge through the field. It’s game on in his final race for Mercedes as he hunts down a podium.
Lap 33/58: Oscar Piastri gets a 10-second penalty
Oscar Piastri already had a time penalty but now he is handed another 10-second penalty by the FIA for failing to serve it at the first stop.
That’s the race over for the Australian too, who now drops down to 15th and well out of the points. It’s another small gain for the Ferrari team in their constructors’ championship bid but so far it’s not enough.
Lap 32/58: Bottas crashes into Magnussen
Valtteri Bottas locks up into Turn 8 and completely slams into the side of Kevin Magnussen, spinning the Haas around in their Scandinavian tussle.
Bottas is out of the race with broken suspension. That could be his final memory in Formula 1.
For Magnussen? He’s now 16th and 40 seconds behind Alpine’s Jack Doohan so his last Grand Prix becomes a procession now too.
Lap 30/58: Verstappen pits
Max Verstappen pits and takes his 10-second time penalty for crashing into Oscar Piastri on Lap 1 of this F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP as he calls the FIA “idiots” for giving him a correct penalty for his amateur brainfade.
The Dutchman’s now 11th on track and he’s behind Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
Lap 29/58: 10-second stop-and-go penalty for Lawson
Liam Lawson takes a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for being released fashion.
He was last of the running cars anyway, but it’s not going to get any easier for the New Zealander and it wasn’t his fault either. Painful.
Lap 28/58: Colapinto OUT of the Abu Dhabi GP
Franco Colapinto’s time in Formula 1 ends with a disappointing retirement as he pulls into the garage and bows out from the sport for now.
But he certainly made quite the impression and he won’t be without a seat for long, either at Williams or somewhere else. Great stuff from the man from Argentina.
Lap 27/58: Russell pits
George Russell pits from the lead and comes out behind Pierre Gasly’s Alpine as he drops down to net-fifth on the track but the Mercedes shouldn’t take too long to move back through.
And that’s exactly what happens as he uses DRS to get by into Turn 9. He’s now going to try to chase down Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, who is three seconds up the road. The Brit will have slightly younger tyres.
Lap 26/58: Sainz pits, Norris reacts
Carlos Sainz comes into the pits finally and it’s not really an undercut attempt to be honest. He was four seconds behind McLaren’s Lando Norris.
George Russell momentarily takes over the lead of the race as the Brit comes into the pits and he gets a good stop. Norris stays ahead of Sainz with a 1.6 second gap.
Lap 25/58: Lawson pits twice in two laps
Liam Lawson says his RB’s tyres are not fitted properly when he’s sent back out onto the track and he duly pits again at the end of that lap seeming very frustrated.
He’s now last of the running cars and he will also take a time penalty for that too.
Lap 23/58: Hamilton could be a bet for the podium
Lewis Hamilton’s currently 10 seconds behind George Russell but he’s running the hard tyres on the alternate strategy so the seven-time world champion could come good at the end.
The medium tyre seems to be much preferred to the hard and it’s the medium the Brit needs to switch onto. Could he collect a podium in his final race for the Silver Arrows?
Lap 21/58: Leclerc pits
Charles Leclerc triggers the undercut and with a 2.7-second stop, he’s serviced by the Ferrari crew and heads out onto the track again.
The Ferrari drops back into the race in eighth and is 2.5 seconds behind Pierre Gasly with a considerable tyre offset but first he must defend from Nico Hulkenberg.
Lap 20/58: Leclerc getting stuck
Charles Leclerc is currently hovering between a second to 1.5 seconds behind the Mercedes of George Russell and doesn’t quite seem to have enough pace to make a move. Ferrari might think about an undercut soon.
They’re now around 16 seconds behind Lando Norris, they’re focusing on each other for now.
Lap 17/58: Black and white flag to Stroll
Lance Stroll is shown the black and white flag for track limits. If he goes over the boundaries again then he will collect a five-second time penalty.
The Canadian is currently running in 14th and around 1.5 seconds behind his teammate in the Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso.
Lap 14/58: Gasly doing a stellar job
Pierre Gasly’s managing to do just enough to hold off George Russell’s Mercedes at the end of the second back straight with the far slower Alpine car.
They’re squabbling for the podium but now Russell is released as Gasly pits with a 2.6-second stop and drops down to eighth with a small gap to Liam Lawson ahead.
Lap 12/58: Charles Leclerc is a man on a mission
Charles Leclerc is now up to fifth as he slips by Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas. He’s got a lot of pace in that Ferrari but he’s simply too far away to make an impression on Lando Norris without a safety car or red flag.
Max Verstappen moves past Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin for seventh, with the Spaniard not putting up too much of a fight. Verstappen’s carrying that 10-second time penalty at the moment.
Lap 10/58: Leclerc up to sixth
Charles Leclerc picks off Fernando Alonso to move up to sixth place. It won’t be enough for Ferrari as things stand, but now they have a chance to catch McLaren in the standings.
Norris continues to lead by 3.5 seconds now, he’s edging away from Carlos Sainz.
Lap 8/58: Norris leads by three seconds
Carlos Sainz currently can’t make an impression on Lando Norris for the lead of the race, with the McLaren heading the Ferrari by around three seconds as things stand.
The Spaniard is three seconds ahead of Pierre Gasly in third though, so he’s quite comfortable as things stand. Gasly’s trying to fend off George Russell with Nico Hulkenberg close by.
Quadruple overtake by Leclerc
Replays show Charles Leclerc overtook around four cars at the end of the first back straight on Lap 1 to move up to eighth place, what an effort by the Ferrari.
He’s now up to seventh after picking off Kevin Magnussen’s Haas.
Lap 5/58: 10 second time penalty for Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen collects a 10 second time penalty for smashing into the side of Oscar Piastri on Lap 1 and that’s basically going to take him out of any kind of contention in this Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Verstappen tries to claim he was unlucky for his own mistake.
“Move of a world champion that one,” says Piastri over the radio.
Lap 3/58: VSC ends, Russell attacks Gasly
Pierre Gasly is astonishingly in third place and he’s currently trying to fend off the Mercedes of George Russell. All that Lap 1 drama has thrown this order into chaos.
Gasly is third, Hulkenberg is fifth, Magnussen has got up to seventh, Stroll has snuck into the Top 10 and Lewis Hamilton has gone from 16th to 12th, right behind Max Verstappen.
Crucially for Ferrari, Charles Leclerc is in eighth place despite starting last but Ferrari need to beat McLaren and Lando Norris leads Carlos Sainz by 2.6 seconds.
Oscar Piastri continues to remain in the wars by hitting the back of Franco Colapinto’s Williams by misjudging his braking. The Argentinian has a puncture but Piastri seems okay for now. He’s in 18th.
Lap 2/58: Virtual Safety Car deployed – Perez out of the race
Sergio Perez is OUT of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a Lap 1 crash, believed to be with Valtteri Bottas who is currently down in 13th after starting ninth.
That’s not the way either of them would have wanted to end their seasons and possibly their careers in Formula 1.
Lap 1/58: Max Verstappen crashes into Oscar Piastri
It’s another moronic lunge on a McLaren by Max Verstappen in the F1 2024 season as he hits Oscar Piastri into Turn 1 with another desperate move to try to get after Lando Norris.
That’s worked out excellently for Ferrari, it gives them half a shot to save their constructors’ championship bid. Amateur hour from the Red Bull.
And it gets even worse for Red Bull as Sergio Perez spins around! Not the Lap 1 they would have hoped for at all and the collision by Verstappen has been noted by race control.
FORMATION LAP BEGINS
Lando Norris leads the drivers away for the formation lap. The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is almost here.
Will McLaren be constructors’ champions or will Ferrari pull off a shock?
Lewis Hamilton’s final Grand Prix for Mercedes. How does he feel?
After 84 wins, six world championships and countless pole positions, podiums, fastest laps and points, Lewis Hamilton will finally say goodbye to Mercedes in Formula 1.
So how does he feel on the day of his farewell as a Silver Arrow?
“It’s a beautiful day. It’s a very strange feeling,” Hamilton tells F1 TV. “I can’t really put in words what I’m feeling at the moment. But I think ultimately just a lot of gratitude, and hoping that today I can do something from all the way back where I am.
“I look at it as a positive that I qualified 18th but I’m actually starting 16th, so there’s one positive. I’m ultimately trying to just be really present, looking around just trying to remember it and take it all in.”
READ: Your qualifying results
It’s Lando Norris on pole position for McLaren ahead of Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz, but where do the rest of the grid slot into place?
Here are the qualifying results from the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP?
ICYMI: Gabriel Bortoleto is your FIA Formula 2 champion
Gabriel Bortoleto joins Sauber for the 2025 season and he capped off his rookie Formula 2 campaign in style by finishing second at the Yas Marina circuit in the feature race.
His rival for the title, Isack Hadjar, stalled at the start and found himself out of contention paving the way for the Brazilian to claim the championship before he links up with the F1 paddock.
Welcome to the blog for the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP
It’s a McLaren 1-2 at the Yas Marina circuit on the weekend they can claim their first constructors’ championship since the 1998 season by beating Ferrari.
The big question is will Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri race each other? Or will they be calm and compliant? Found out here with Total-Motorsport.com.
When is the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP?
The F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP will take place at 17:00 local time on Sunday, December 8 at the Yas Marina circuit in the United Arab Emirates, a nation located in the Middle East.
For watchers from the United Kingdom, that means you should be turning on the television at 13:00 GMT time.
For those in the United States and Canada, situated near the East Coast, set your alarm clock for 08:00 ET on Sunday, December 8. For those on the western coast of the USA and Canada, you should be waking up at 05:00 PT.
For fans Down Under in Australia, the race will begin at 00:00 AEDT on December 9. Whilst for those from New Zealand tuning in to see their very own Kiwi, Liam Lawson, it’s a 02:00 NZDT start time.
Where to Watch the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP live?
In the UK, the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP will be broadcast by Sky Sports F1 which will supply live coverage of all sessions, including practice, qualifying and Sunday’s race. Streaming will be provided by Sky’s NOW service as well as Sky Go.
In the USA, ESPN will broadcast Sunday’s Grand Prix. The race can be watched live on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Deportes. ESPN+ will provide streaming options for those who prefer to watch all 57 laps online.
Canadian fans can watch the action on TSN and RDS. Both networks offer live coverage of all sessions. Streaming is also available through TSN Direct and RDS Direct.
In Australia, the F1 2024 Abu Dhabi GP will be shown live on FOX Sports 506. Kayo Sports will provide streaming services for comprehensive coverage of all Formula 1 sessions. Network Ten will also offer select live coverage for those unable to catch all of the action.
