Abu Dhabi: Nico Rosberg wrapped up the Formula One season on a winning high in Abu Dhabi yesterday with team mate and triple world champion Lewis Hamilton second in a record 12th one-two finish of the year for dominant Mercedes.
The German’s third win in a row, from a sixth successive pole position, dashed Hamilton’s hopes of a 44th career victory in car 44 on the 44th anniversary of the founding of the UAE.
The Briton, who clinched the title in Texas last month with three races to spare, finished 8.2 seconds behind after an attempt at a different strategy failed to produce the desired result.
The win was the 16th in 19 races for Mercedes.
“Austin (in Texas) was a tough weekend and since then I’ve just come back a lot stronger,” said Rosberg from the podium after spraying the sparkling rosewater used instead of the usual champagne.
Hamilton had asked over the team radio with 15 laps to go whether he could go to the end having made only one pitstop to Rosberg’s two but was left in no doubt that such a move would not work.
He then pitted on the next lap, any hopes of a wheel-to-wheel battle over the final laps effectively disappearing into the night as he did so.
Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen took third place ahead of team mate Sebastian Vettel, who started 15th, for only the Finn’s third podium appearance of the season.
Rosberg’s win was his sixth of the season, 14th of his career, and a hat-trick first for the German who had never before managed to win three races in a row.
Hamilton ended the championship with 10 victories, one fewer than in 2014, but he took more poles and fastest laps than anyone else.
Mexican Sergio Perez finished fifth, with Australian Daniel Ricciardo sixth for Red Bull and splitting the Force India cars with Germany’s Nico Hulkenberg seventh.
Brazilian Felipe Massa took eighth place for Williams, ahead of Frenchman Romain Grosjean in ninth in his final race for Lotus before moving to 2016 newcomers Haas.
Russian Daniil Kvyat secured the final point for Red Bull.
Rosberg, who made a clean start and was never threatened, was only the second driver to win the day-to-night floodlit race from pole position since Abu Dhabi first appeared on the calendar in 2009.
FINAL STANDINGS
1 L Hamilton Mercedes 381
2 N Rosberg Mercedes 322
3 S Vettel Ferrari 278
4 K Raikkonen Ferrari 150
5 V Bottas Williams 136
6 F Massa Williams 121
7 D Kvyat Red Bull 95
8 D Ricciardo Red Bull 92
9 S Perez Force India 78
10 N Huelkenberg Force India 58
11 R Grosjean Lotus 51
12 M Verstappen Toro Rosso 49
13 F Nasr Sauber 27
14 P Maldonado Lotus 27
15 C Sainz Jr Toro Rosso 18
16 J Button McLaren 16
17 F Alonso McLaren 11
18 M Ericsson Sauber 9
Constructors
1 Mercedes 703
2 Ferrari 428
3 Williams-Mercedes 257
4 RedBull-Renault 187
5 Force India-Mercedes 136
6 Lotus-Mercedes 78
7 Toro Rosso-Renault 67
8 Sauber-Ferrari 36
9 McLaren 27
10 Marussia-Ferrari 0
ABU DHABI GP TOP 10
1 Nico Rosberg (GER/Mercedes) 1hr 38min 30.175sec, 2 Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) at 8.271, 3 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari) 19.430, 4 Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 43.735, 5 Sergio Perez (MEX/Force India) 1:03.952, 6 Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/Red Bull) 1:05.010, 7 Nico Hülkenberg (GER/Force India) 1:33.618, 8 Felipe Massa (BRA/Williams) 1:37.751, 9 Romain Grosjean (FRA/Lotus) 1:38.201, 10 Daniil Kvyat (RUS/Red Bull) 1:42.371