Kimi Raikkonen won for the first time since his F1 comeback on this day in 2012 after celebrating his victory at the Abu Dhabi GP. The Finn withstood late pressure from the double world champion Fernando Alonso who desperately wanted to close the gap to the championship leader Sebastian Vettel.
Race will be remembered for his usually cool display in tense closing laps and his famous team radio responses to his team.
“Just leave me alone, I know what I’m doing!”
…was Kimi’s response to his team warning him that the car behind is Fernando Alonso who is closing the gap.
“Yes, yes, yes, yes, I’m doing it all the time. You don’t have to remind me every ten seconds.”
…was Kimi’s response to his team instructing him to warm up all of his tyres behind the safety car.
BACKGROUND
Sebastian Vettel arrived in Abu Dhabi as the championship leader, 13 points ahead of Fernando Alonso. Abu Dhabi GP was the 18th of 20 races in 2012. (the other two were the US Grand Prix in Austin and the Brazilian GP), which was then the longest season in F1 history (previously up to 19 races, 2005.).
Lewis Hamilton qualified on pole position, repeating the success from 2009. – Briton was fastest in all three qualifying session in his McLaren MP4-27.
The second fastest was Mark Webber and third was Sebastian Vettel who was excluded from wualifying for not having enough fuel.
Red Bull decided to withdraw his car from Parc Ferme to make changes to the settings of the car (among other things they choose to reduce downforce and extend gear ratios to enhance his overtaking cances) and Vettel started the race from the pit lane.
Pastor Maldonado started third in Williams, Kimi Raikkonen was fourth in Lotus, fifth was Jenson Button in McLaren and the sixth was Fernando Alonso in Ferrari.
RACE
Hamilton led for 20 laps when he had to retire because of the fuel pump malfunction. Raikkonen takes the lead in his Lotus while Sebastian Vettel was second in lap 31, 20 seconds behind the leading Raikkonen. After his pitstop, Vettel dropped to fourth.
After the collision between Perez and Grosjean safety car came out for the second timer which enables Vettel to close on Button and overtake him in lap 51, four laps to go.
Alonso was really close to leading Raikkonen but the Finn managed to preserve the lead and win for the first time after the Belgian Grand Prix in 2009. and the first time since his return to Formula 1 in 2012. Alonso finished second and Vettel third after starting from the pit lane.
Vettel’s lead over Alonso before the last two races of the championship was reduced to ten points.
STARTING GRID
| 1 | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren/Mercedes | 1:40.630 | – |
| 2 | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull/Renault | 1:40.978 | 0.348 |
| 3 | 18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams/Renault | 1:41.226 | 0.596 |
| 4 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus/Renault | 1:41.260 | 0.630 |
| 5 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren/Mercedes | 1:41.290 | 0.660 |
| 6 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:41.582 | 0.952 |
| 7 | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:41.603 | 0.973 |
| 8 | 6 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:41.723 | 1.093 |
| 9 | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus/Renault | 1:41.778 | 1.148 |
| 10 | 12 | Nico Hülkenberg | Force India/Mercedes | 1:42.019 | 1.389 |
| 11 | 15 | Sergio Pérez | Sauber/Ferrari | 1:42.084 | 1.454 |
| 12 | 11 | Paul Di Resta | Force India/Mercedes | 1:42.218 | 1.588 |
| 13 | 7 | M.Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:42.289 | 1.659 |
| 14 | 19 | Bruno Senna | Williams/Renault | 1:42.330 | 1.700 |
| 15 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber/Ferrari | 1:42.606 | 1.976 |
| 16 | 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 1:42.765 | 2.135 |
| 17 | 17 | Jean-Éric Vergne | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 1:44.058 | 3.428 |
| 18 | 20 | H.Kovalainen | Caterham/Renault | 1:44.956 | 4.326 |
| 19 | 25 | Charles Pic | Marussia/Cosworth | 1:45.089 | 4.459 |
| 20 | 21 | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham/Renault | 1:45.151 | 4.521 |
| 21 | 24 | Timo Glock | Marussia/Cosworth | 1:45.426 | 4.796 |
| 22 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT/Cosworth | 1:45.766 | 5.136 |
| 23 | 23 | N.Karthikeyan | HRT/Cosworth | 1:46.382 | 5.752 |
| 24 | 1 | Sebastian Vettel
| Red Bull/Renault | 1:41.073 | 0.443 |
#5 Sebastian Vettel – Disqualified after not having enough fuel for FIA to take sample
RACE RESULTS
| 1 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus/Renault | 55 | 1:45:58.667 | |
| 2 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 55 | 1:45:59.519 | 0.852 |
| 3 | 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull/Renault | 55 | 1:46:02.830 | 4.163 |
| 4 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren/Mercedes | 55 | 1:46:06.454 | 7.787 |
| 5 | 18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams/Renault | 55 | 1:46:11.674 | 13.007 |
| 6 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber/Ferrari | 55 | 1:46:18.743 | 20.076 |
| 7 | 6 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 55 | 1:46:21.563 | 22.896 |
| 8 | 19 | Bruno Senna | Williams/Renault | 55 | 1:46:22.209 | 23.542 |
| 9 | 11 | Paul Di Resta | Force India/Mercedes | 55 | 1:46:22.827 | 24.160 |
| 10 | 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 55 | 1:46:26.130 | 27.463 |
| 11 | 7 | M.Schumacher | Mercedes | 55 | 1:46:26.742 | 28.075 |
| 12 | 17 | Jean-Éric Vergne | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 55 | 1:46:33.573 | 34.906 |
| 13 | 20 | H.Kovalainen | Caterham/Renault | 55 | 1:46:46.431 | 47.764 |
| 14 | 24 | Timo Glock | Marussia/Cosworth | 55 | 1:46:55.140 | 56.473 |
| 15 | 15 | Sergio Pérez | Sauber/Ferrari | 55 | 1:46:55.435 | 56.768 |
| 16 | 21 | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham/Renault | 55 | 1:47:03.262 | 1:04.595 |
| 17 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT/Cosworth | 55 | 1:47:10.445 | 1:11.778 |
| (17) | 25 | Charles Pic | Marussia/Cosworth | 41 | 1:21:09.038 | Engine |
| (5) | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus/Renault | 37 | 1:11:58.863 | Collision |
| (8) | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull/Renault | 37 | 1:12:00.592 | Collision |
| (1) | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren/Mercedes | 19 | 39:01.275 | Fuel pressure |
| (19) | 23 | N.Karthikeyan | HRT/Cosworth | 7 | 13:25.885 | Hydraulics |
| (20) | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 7 | 13:27.959 | Collision |
| 12 | Nico Hülkenberg | Force India/Mercedes | 0 | Collision | ||
Fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel – 1:43.964 (lap 54)
DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 18/20 RACES
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | 255 | 18 | – | 10 | 25 | 8 | 12 | 12 | – | 15 | 10 | 12 | 18 | – | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 15 |
| 2 | Fernando Alonso | 245 | 10 | 25 | 2 | 6 | 18 | 15 | 10 | 25 | 18 | 25 | 10 | – | 15 | 15 | – | 15 | 18 | 18 |
| 3 | Kimi Räikkönen | 198 | 6 | 10 | – | 18 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 18 | 10 | 15 | 18 | 15 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 25 |
| 4 | Mark Webber | 167 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | – | 25 | 6 | 12 | 25 | 4 | 4 | 8 | – | – | 2 | 18 | 15 | – |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | 165 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 25 | – | 4 | – | 25 | – | 25 | – | 10 | 1 | 12 | – |
| 6 | Jenson Button | 153 | 25 | – | 18 | – | 2 | – | – | 4 | 1 | 18 | 8 | 25 | – | 18 | 12 | – | 10 | 12 |
| 7 | Felipe Massa | 95 | – | – | – | 2 | – | 8 | 1 | – | 12 | – | 2 | 10 | 12 | 4 | 18 | 12 | 8 | 6 |
| 8 | Nico Rosberg | 93 | – | – | 25 | 10 | 6 | 18 | 8 | 8 | – | 1 | 1 | – | 6 | 10 | – | – | – | – |
| 9 | Romain Grosjean | 90 | – | – | 8 | 15 | 12 | – | 18 | – | 8 | – | 15 | – | 6 | – | 6 | 2 | – | |
| 10 | Sergio Pérez | 66 | 4 | 18 | – | – | – | – | 15 | 2 | – | 8 | – | – | 18 | 1 | – | – | – | – |
| 11 | Kamui Kobayashi | 58 | 8 | – | 1 | – | 10 | – | 2 | – | – | 12 | – | – | 2 | – | 15 | – | – | 8 |
| 12 | Nico Hülkenberg | 49 | – | 2 | – | – | 1 | 4 | – | 10 | – | 2 | – | 12 | – | – | 6 | 8 | 4 | – |
| 13 | Paul Di Resta | 46 | 1 | 6 | – | 8 | – | 6 | – | 6 | – | – | – | 1 | 4 | 12 | – | – | – | 2 |
| 14 | Pastor Maldonado | 43 | – | – | 4 | – | 25 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4 | – | – | 10 |
| 15 | M.Schumacher | 43 | – | 1 | – | 1 | – | – | – | 15 | 6 | 6 | – | 6 | 8 | – | – | – | – | – |
| 16 | Bruno Senna | 30 | – | 8 | 6 | – | – | 1 | – | 1 | 2 | – | 6 | – | 1 | – | – | – | 1 | 4 |
| 17 | Jean-Éric Vergne | 12 | – | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4 | – | – | – | 4 | – | – |
| 18 | Daniel Ricciardo | 10 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | – | 2 | 1 | 2 | – | 1 |
| 19 | Timo Glock | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 20 | H.Kovalainen | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 21 | Vitaly Petrov | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 22 | J.d’Ambrosio | 0 | – | |||||||||||||||||
| 23 | Charles Pic | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 24 | N.Karthikeyan | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 25 | Pedro de la Rosa | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
CONSTRUCTORS’ CHAMPIONSHIP
| 1 | Red Bull/Renault | 422 | 30 | 12 | 22 | 37 | 8 | 37 | 18 | 12 | 40 | 14 | 16 | 26 | – | 25 | 27 | 43 | 40 | 15 |
| 2 | Ferrari | 340 | 10 | 25 | 2 | 8 | 18 | 23 | 11 | 25 | 30 | 25 | 12 | 10 | 27 | 19 | 18 | 27 | 26 | 24 |
| 3 | McLaren/Mercedes | 318 | 40 | 15 | 33 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 25 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 33 | 25 | 25 | 18 | 22 | 1 | 22 | 12 |
| 4 | Lotus/Renault | 288 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 33 | 27 | 2 | 22 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 33 | 15 | 10 | 14 | 8 | 16 | 8 | 25 |
| 5 | Mercedes | 136 | – | 1 | 25 | 11 | 6 | 18 | 8 | 23 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 10 | – | – | – | – |
| 6 | Sauber/Ferrari | 124 | 12 | 18 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 17 | 2 | – | 20 | – | – | 20 | 1 | 15 | – | – | 8 |
| 7 | Force India/Mercedes | 95 | 1 | 8 | – | 8 | 1 | 10 | – | 16 | – | 2 | – | 13 | 4 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 2 |
| 8 | Williams/Renault | 73 | – | 8 | 10 | – | 25 | 1 | – | 1 | 2 | – | 6 | – | 1 | – | 4 | – | 1 | 14 |
| 9 | Toro Rosso/Ferrari | 22 | 2 | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 6 | – | 2 | 1 | 6 | – | 1 |
| 10 | Marussia/Cosworth | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 11 | Caterham/Renault | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 12 | HRT/Cosworth | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
