Abu Dhabi, November 23, 2014 – Lewis Hamilton claimed the second drivers’ championship of his career after winning the title decider in Abu Dhabi, using a two-stop strategy. The Mercedes driver started on the supersoft tyre from second on the grid, getting a blistering start, beating team mate Rosberg into turn 1.
The 16th win for Mercedes this season has broken the all-time record of 15 previously held by Ferrari and McLaren. Hamilton also becomes the first Mercedes world champion since Juan Manuel Fangio, having claimed 11 victories in total this year.
During the closing stages of the race, Hamilton was challenged by Williams driver Felipe Massa, who used a different two-stop strategy to him. Massa started on the supersoft from fourth on the grid, switched to the soft, and then ran the final 13 laps on the supersoft again, which was around a second per lap faster than the soft.
This enabled the Brazilian to close up to less than three seconds behind Hamilton at the finish, while his Williams team mate Valtteri Bottas completed the podium. Bottas used a supersoft-soft-soft strategy.
After being excluded from qualifying, both Red Bull drivers started from the pitlane, adopting a similar soft-soft-supersoft strategy. This helped Daniel Ricciardo to finish fourth, having risen as high as third, and set the fastest lap of the race. Ricciardo was also the highest-placed finisher to start the race on the soft tyre, with all but six drivers beginning the grand prix on the supersoft.
With falling track and air temperatures, the circuit tended to get faster as the race progressed, meaning that the teams had to monitor tyre wear and degradation carefully. Both compounds performed exactly in line with expectations, allowing drivers and teams to push to the maximum.
Felipe Massa: It was a close race, I didn’t think the victory was there, but it was so close at the end. It was good to be racing and pushing the Mercedes. I hope this is a strong building block to go on for next year. The team progressed so much throughout the year, which is why we were able to get podiums in the second half of the season; we will continue this forward movement into next year.
Valtteri Bottas: We were very competitive today. I got a bad start and the race was compromised after I was stuck behind a few cars, so to walk away with a podium is incredible. It was a good race; I could really push and fight. The team has grown and developed throughout the season, from our first race in Melbourne to our best result here. It’s a great start to build on for next year and to continue the team’s great history.
Daniel Ricciardo: 4th, Start Position: Pit Lane-“Yeah really happy, I think it was pretty much a faultless race from all sides, from the strategy, to myself and the pit stops, everything was good so we did everything we needed to. I had fun passing, it wasn’t boring out there, so it was pretty much what I asked for. One spot better would have been nice, but fourth is really cool from the pit lane. It’s been pretty much a perfect season, as perfect as it can be without holding a world title, so no real regrets, no complaints. It’s nice to not only start the season well, but to finish it well also and I think all the way through it was good – we had a strong summer as well, so the start, middle and end were pretty good!”
Sebastian Vettel: Finish Position: 8th, Start Position: Pit Lane-“I felt there was more, but once I got stuck behind Kevin at the beginning it was quite tough, so I can’t be completely happy with today; when you race you want to finish as high up as you can and today I think we had the pace to finish higher. I think the last six years have been an incredible journey, obviously we didn’t expect that when we started working together – you can never expect four Driver titles and four Constructors’ Championships in a row. You get to know some people in a very good way and build friendships that will last a long time. You go through happy days and sad days, you go through them together and I think I learned a lot. I’d like to thank Red Bull and the Team for everything they did and I will miss them. I feel ready for the next step.”
Fernando Alonso: “Today, my time with Ferrari comes to an end, as does a very tricky season, in which, even if we were unable to do much against the technical dominance of our rivals, we fought all the way to the very end, all of us did our utmost, putting our hearts into it. Today’s race was difficult to manage but at the same time it was very emotional for me; after five years it’s not easy to say farewell to a team with which I have grown so much over the past five years, both as a driver and as a person. I thank all the Ferraristi for their support. I will miss the team, the fans and Italy. Even though we are going our separate ways, I feel I have lived through a unique experience which any Formula 1 driver would have loved to have had.”
Kimi Raikkonen: “It was a very difficult race but we knew right from the beginning that this track would be tough for us. The start was good but then, at the first stop, I already lost a few places and from then on I couldn’t move up the order. The car handled well and I had no particular problem, but today we lacked the speed we needed to attack. All season we have faced a series of difficulties which we put a lot of effort into solving and we learned a lot from that. We know which direction we need to work in to be competitive as soon as possible and I have absolute faith in the team.”
Jenson Button 5th-“That was tough! I think we made the best of what we had this evening: in terms of strategy, we did the right thing, but we never really had enough pace to attack the cars in front.“So, fifth was as good as it was going to be. Getting the maximum from the car is all that can be asked of a racing driver, and I think I’ve proved this year that I’m still at the top of my game.Since it’s the last race of the season, I’d like to say a huge ‘thanks’ to Tom [Stallard] and Bernie [Collins], my two race engineers, who’ve done a fantastic job this year, as have all my mechanics. The whole team has been so supportive, which is lovely. It’s been a good day for me, but a much better day for my old team buddy Lewis [Hamilton]. Winning two world titles is an absolutely amazing achievement. Congratulations to him – he deserves it.I’m sure tonight will be fun – I’ll celebrate a good end to the year with my family.”
Kevin Magnussen- 11th “That was a difficult race. I had quite a bit of contact with Adrian [Sutil] on the first lap – and, after that, the front of the car never felt quite right, but it wasn’t too bad, so I could carry on. My opening stint on the Prime went well – the tyre was holding on well and I felt like I could manage the degradation. But once I’d pitted and changed to the Option, the race slipped away from us. The softer tyre ought to have helped us gain some positions over the drivers running the Prime, but we just stayed where we were, and that ruined the race for us. Congratulations to Lewis – he’s driven brilliantly all season, and completely deserves the title this year. He’s had a stunning season. Finally, I want to pass on my thanks to the whole McLaren team. This season has been an incredible experience for me – I’ve learned so much this year. It’s been fantastic – so thanks, guys!”
Pastor Maldonado, DNF, –“That was a surprising race for me. Our race pace was actually pretty good and I was able to fight with the Ferraris as well as enjoy the feel from the car. I was able to push and the car worked well on both tyre compounds. Unfortunately, my race had to end early. The flames showed the engine wasn’t working too well which also mean it was getting quite hot in the car! It’s a shame to finish a season like we did, but I know we have a lot of potential for 2015, so I am really looking forward to surprising some people when we return.”
Adrian Sutil 16th It was a normal race. I had quite a good start. Afterwards Kevin (Magnussen) drove into my car, and I dropped back many positons. I still cannot say if my car was damaged or not. After this incident I tried my best to get back into the race. However, we had to switch to another strategy with three pit stops, which was not ideal. In general the pace was not good enough, so a better result would have been difficult to achieve. Finally, I want to thank the engineers and mechanics who have all worked very hard throughout the season.”
