Formula 1

MAX DOMINATES TO THE LAST LAP, LECLERC TAKES SECOND IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP, CHECO SETTLES FOR THIRD. AND WE SAY SO LONG TO SEBATIAN VETTEL PEACE AND LOVE TO YOU!

Sebastian Vettel
“I enjoyed the race this evening, but it was a shame that we could not quite get past Daniel [Ricciardo] at the end. The lead-up to the race was a bit different with so many tributes and activities on the grid, but once the lights went out it was full-on race mode. It was not an easy race because it was a close call between a one-stop and two-stop strategy.

On my car, we tried to make the one-stop work, but as the tyres were getting older it was quite challenging to hold on. It was nice to fight the last couple of laps with Daniel and to have us both finishing in the points, but we just missed out on moving up a place in the Constructors’ World Championship.

Overall, it has been a big and emotional weekend, so thank you to everybody for all the support. Seeing so many flags and so many smiling faces has been very, very special. I am sure I am going to miss it more than I understand right now. The past two years have been great for me personally so thank you for all the support – all the messages, the letters and all the love in general. I will miss that but it has been an absolute joy throughout my career so thank you all again.”

Max ended his campaign with yet another dominant display as he secured his 15th victory of the season with an assured drive at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to cap a truly remarkable 2022.

Having already wrapped up his second world title and helped Oracle Red Bull Racing secure the constructors’ crown, the Dutch driver showed no signs of complacency as he cruised to victory from pole position at Yas Marina Circuit.

Team-mate Sergio Pérez started the race level on points with Charles LeClerc and knew that finishing ahead of the Ferrari driver would secure second in the drivers’ championship. The Mexican pushed hard throughout the race but was unable to catch LeClerc and eventually had to settle for third in the race and in the final championship standings.

Scuderia AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda narrowly missed out on the points as he finished in 11th place, while team-mate Pierre Gasly – who will be replaced by Dutchman Nyck de Vries next season – was 14th in his final race for the team.

MAX: “It was incredible to win here again and to get 15 wins in total this season is unbelievable. It was a good race, the one stop really worked for me and it was all about tyre management today. As a Team, we did everything we could to get Checo up there ahead of Charles, we had split strategies, but it didn’t work out today. Overall, we’ve achieved a lot this year as a Team and we can all be proud of that, its great motivation heading into next year.

We’ve had an incredible season and I want to thank everyone in the Team out here in Abu Dhabi and back at the factory, this sport requires dedication, and everyone at Oracle Red Bull Racing has that, it’s clear to see. I’m really looking forward to a break now and I hope everyone has a good Winter and much-needed time with family and friends.”

CHECO: “I am pleased because I gave it my all today. In the end we just didn’t have enough, this is how the sport works, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. It hurts to lose second place in the Championship by one second, there are things we could have done better but at the end of the day what matters is that you never give up in this sport and that is what I have done this season, on and off track, so I can go home happy.

What really meant the most this season is that we gave everything, always, and we ended the final race doing just that. The Team has had a tremendous year so it is nice to finish the season well, we will regroup and look to another strong year in 2023.”