(Pirelli Motorsport Media)
Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team's Lewis Hamilton claimed his second Formula One drivers championship at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday as he put a two stop strategy to good use claiming victory ahead of the Williams Martini Racing Team's Felipe Massa by 2.5s. Hamilton started the race on a used set of the P-Zero Red marked Super Soft tyre before making his first stop of the race on lap 10 of the race for a new set of the yellow marked Soft tyre. He made his final stop for a set of new Soft tyre's on lap 31.
Williams Martini Racing Team's Felipe Massa also made a two stop strategy work but went about it slightly differently to Hamilton as the Brazilian started the race on used Super Soft rubber before making his first stop on lap 13 for a set of new Soft tyre's before making his final stop for a used set of Super Soft tyre's on lap 43 which allowed Massa to close the gap to Lewis Hamilton but unfortunately it was not enough to take the victory.
Valtteri Bottas in the second Williams FW36 went down exactly the same strategy path as team mate Felipe Massa making his two stops on lap 10 and 35.
Infiniti Red Bull Racing's Daniel Ricciardo started the race from the pit-lane on a new set of Soft tyre's. The Australian made his first stop of the race on lap 27 for a new set of Soft tyre's before making his second stop on lap 47 for a used set of the Super Soft tyre's.
Only three drivers made three stops with Toro Rosso's Jean Eric Vergne stopping on lap 13, for new Soft tyre's stopping again on lap 30 for a second new set of Soft tyre's before making his final stop on lap 44 for a set of new Super Soft tyre's. The Lotus F1 Team's Romain Grosjean also made three stops. The Frenchman was forced to serve a drive through penalty and made his first stop on the first lap of the race for a set of the used Super Soft tyre after starting on a new set of the Super Soft compound.
The Lotus driver made his second stop on lap 8 for a set of new Soft tyre's before making his final stop on lap 21 for a set of new Soft tyre's.
The Sauber F1 Team's Adrian Sutil was the last driver to run a three stop strategy starting the race on a new set of the Super Soft tyre before making his first stop on lap 5 for a new set of the Soft tyre, The German made his second stop on lap 22 for a second new set of the Soft compound rubber before making his final stop on lap 37 for new Soft tyre's.
Sahara Force India F1 Team's Nico Hulkenberg completed 18 laps on the Super Soft tyre, the most of any of the drivers, while Romain Grosjean completed 33 laps on the Soft tyre which was most number of consecutive laps completed by any driver on that compound.
Sahara Force India F1 Team's Nico Hulkenberg completed 18 laps on the Super Soft tyre, the most of any of the drivers, while Romain Grosjean completed 33 laps on the Soft tyre which was most number of consecutive laps completed by any driver on that compound.
Speaking following the race, Pirelli Motorsport Director Paul Hembery stated:
'Congratulations to Lewis Hamilton for winning the title, and also to Nico Rosberg, who provided him with fantastic opposition all year. The tyres performed as we expected them to here, in line with the data we had collected before the race.
We saw a wide variety of interesting strategies at work today, with Massa showcasing the speed of the supersoft at the end of the race, and Ricciardo putting in a great performance from the back after starting on the soft. It’s been a fascinating end to a compelling season, but we’re already turning our attention to 2015 as we embark on the final test of the season here next week on Tuesday and Wednesday, where some our new tyres will make their debut.'
© Ben Johnston 2014
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