FIA confirms 2017 calendar.

Formula One racing's governing body, the FIA, has formally ratified a 20-race calendar for the 2017 season following a meeting of its World Motor Sport Council (WMSC). The 2017 season will begin on March 26 in Australia and conclude on November 26 in Abu Dhabi, and will include five back-to-back race weekends.The main changes from the provisional calendar issued in September are Malaysia and Singapore switching places, the absence of the race in Germany, and Baku moving a week earlier, avoiding a clash with the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Date	Country	City
March 26	Australia	Melbourne
April 9	China	Shanghai
April 16	Bahrain	Bahrain
April 30	Russia	Sochi
May 14	Spain	Barcelona
May 28	Monaco	Monte Carlo
June 11	Canada	Montreal
June 25	Azerbaijan	Baku
July 9	Austria	Spielberg
July 16	Great Britain	Silverstone
July 30	Hungary	Budapest
August 27	Belgium	Spa-Francorchamps
September 3	Italy	Monza
September 17	Singapore	Singapore
October 1	Malaysia	Sepang
October 8	Japan	Suzuka
October 22	USA	Austin
October 22	Mexico	Mexico City
November 12	Brazil	Sao Paulo
November 26	Abu Dhabi	Abu Dhabi

Rosberg announces his retirement from F1 racing.

“Since 25 years in racing, it has been my dream, my ‘one thing’ to become Formula One World Champion,” said Rosberg via social media. “Through the hard work, the pain, the sacrifices, this has been my target. And now I’ve made it. I have climbed my mountain, I am on the peak, so this feels right. My strongest emotion right now is deep gratitude to everybody who supported me to make that dream happen.”
Rosberg, who won nine Grands Prix this year en route to the title, said he began contemplating his future at October’s Japanese round, and then made his decision within 24 hours of last weekend’s thrilling finale in Abu Dhabi, where he secured the podium finish he needed to become champion.

“When I won the race in Suzuka, from the moment when the destiny of the title was in my own hands, the big pressure started and I began to think about ending my racing career if I became world champion,” he continued.

“On Sunday morning in Abu Dhabi, I knew that it could be my last race and that feeling cleared my head before the start. I wanted to enjoy every part of the experience, knowing it might be the last time… and then the lights went out and I had the most intense 55 laps of my life.

“I took my decision on Monday evening. After reflecting for a day, the first people I told were (wife) Vivian and Georg (Nolte, from his management team), followed by (Mercedes-Benz Head of Motorsport) Toto (Wolff).”

Rosberg began his F1 career with Williams in 2006 before moving to Mercedes for the 2010 season. He won his first Grand Prix with the Silver Arrows in China 2012 and went on to take a total of 23 victories from 206 starts, twice finishing championship runner-up to team mate Lewis Hamilton before taking his maiden drivers’ crown.

“This season, I tell you, it was so damn tough,” confessed Rosberg, who admitted thoughts of his family had played a part in his decision. “I pushed like crazy in every area after the disappointments of the last two years; they fueledc my motivation to levels I had never experienced before. And of course that had an impact on the ones I love, too - it was a whole family effort of sacrifice, putting everything behind our target.

“I cannot find enough words to thank my wife Vivian; she has been incredible. She understood that this year was the big one, our opportunity to do it, and created the space for me to get full recovery between every race, looking after our daughter each night, taking over when things got tough and putting our championship first.”

Rosberg, whose father Keke won the F1 world championship in 1982, revealed the other concern in his decision had been his Mercedes team, who will now have to find another driver to partner Hamilton in 2017.

“The only thing that makes this decision in any way difficult for me is because I am putting my racing family into a tough situation,” he said “But Toto understood. He knew straight away that I was completely convinced and that reassured me. My proudest achievement in racing will always be to have won the world championship with this incredible team of people, the Silver Arrows.”

Rosberg announced his decision at a press conference in the Austrian capital of Vienna, where on Friday evening he and Mercedes will collect their 2016 championship trophies at the annual FIA Prize-Giving gala.

“Now, I’m just here to enjoy the moment,” concluded Rosberg, who ruled out any future F1 return. “There is time to savoir the next weeks, to reflect on the season and to enjoy every experience that comes my way. After that, I will turn the next corner in my life and see what it has in store for me…”

2016 Driver's Standings.

Name of Driver	Team	Country	Wins	Points
NICO ROSBERG	MERCEDES	GER	9	385
LEWIS HAMILTON	MERCEDES	GBR	10	380
DANIEL RICCIARDO	RED BULL RACING	AUS	1	256
SEBASTIAN VETTEL	FERRARI	GER	0	212
MAX VERSTAPPEN	RED BULL RACING	NED	1	204
KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN	FERRARI	FIN	0	186
SERGIO PEREZ	FORCE INDIA	MEX	0	101
VALTTERI BOTTAS	WILLIAMS	FIN	0	85
NICO HULKENBERG	FORCE INDIA	GER	0	72
FERNANDO ALONSO	MCLAREN	ESP	0	54
FELIPE MASSA	WILLIAMS	BRA	0	53
CARLOS SAINZ	TORO ROSSO	ESP	0	46
ROMAIN GROSJEAN	HAAS	FRA	0	29
DANIIL KVYAT	TORO ROSSO	RUS	0	25
JENSON BUTTON	MCLAREN	GBR	0	21
KEVIN MAGNUSSEN	RENAULT	DEN	0	7
FELIPE NASR	SAUBER	BRA	0	2
JOLYON PALMER	RENAULT	GBR	0	1
PASCAL WEHRLEIN	MRT	GER	0	1
STOFFEL VANDOORNE	MCLAREN	BEL	0	1

21 Races

2016 Formula one World Champion - Nico Rosberg.

2016 Season Stats,

Starts: 21 

Wins: 9

Podiums: 16

Poles: 8

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2016: Results.

Nico Rosberg wins the Formula One title despite Lewis Hamilton's race victory.

Nico Rosberg has secured the first Formula 1 world championship title of his career after cruising to a podium finish in Abu Dhabi, 34 years after his father Keke triumphed on the main stage.

Rosberg started the evening second on the grid at Yas Marina, trailing in the wake of Mercedes team-mate and rival Lewis Hamilton, but the German knew a podium finish would be enough and, despite Hamilton's increased efforts to slow down the pack and place drivers between the two on the field, it was Rosberg who would hold his nerve to clinch the title that had until now evaded him.

Name of Driver	Team	Time	Points
LEWIS HAMILTON	MERCEDES	1:38:04.013	25
NICO ROSBERG	MERCEDES	+0.439s	18
SEBASTIAN VETTEL	FERRARI	+0.843s	15
MAX VERSTAPPEN	RED BULL RACING	+1.685s	12
DANIEL RICCIARDO	RED BULL RACING	+5.315s	10
KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN	FERRARI	+18.816s	8
NICO HULKENBERG	FORCE INDIA	+50.114s	6
SERGIO PEREZ	FORCE INDIA	+58.776s	4
FELIPE MASSA	WILLIAMS	+59.436s	2

Abu Dhabi's previous title deciders.

Abu Dhabi will determine the outcome of this year's tense world championship fight, with Mercedes team mates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton just 12 points apart heading into the 2016 finale. It's not the first time that the Yas Marina Circuit has played host to a dramatic championship showdown.

2010 - Vettel's maiden triumph,

BEFORE - 1. Alonso, 246 pts; 2. Webber, 238; 3. Vettel, 231; 4. Hamilton, 222
AFTER - 1. Vettel, 256 pts; 2. Alonso, 252; 3. Webber, 242; 4. Hamilton, 240

One of the closest-fought seasons in recent history came down to a four-way showdown in 2010. Five men had won races during the year, and five men had enjoyed spells at the top of the championship. Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was the favourite, leading as he did by eight points from Red Bull's Mark Webber. The Australian was duly centre of attention for the Scuderia - but that would come back to haunt them.

It was Webber's team mate Sebastian Vettel who captured pole and led from the start, with McLaren's Lewis Hamilton second and Alonso falling back one spot to fourth, just ahead of Webber. So far so good for the Spaniard. The race would turn, though, on the first set of stops. Webber pitted early and Ferrari reacted, bringing Alonso in too. As Vettel and Hamilton continued to go faster despite being on worn tyres, Alonso and Webber - still together on track - found themselves bottled up behind Renault's early-stopping Vitaly Petrov. The battle, which would rage until the chequered flag, would undo Alonso's title hopes. Stuck behind the Russian, the Ferrari man was only seventh at the finish - enough to keep him ahead of Webber, but not the triumphant Vettel. A new champion - the youngest in the sport's history - was born.

2014 - Hamilton vs Rosberg,

BEFORE - 1. Hamilton, 334 pts; 2. Rosberg, 317 pts
AFTER - 1. Hamilton, 384 pts; 2. Rosberg, 317 pts

With Mercedes the clear class of the field under F1's new regulations, the title became an increasingly fraught two-horse race between team mates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Gradually the scintillating early battles spilled into something more, with the tipping point coming in Belgium when the two collided while contesting the lead - costing both men the chance of victory. Hamilton was now 29 points behind, but after clear-the-air talks he was a man on a mission, hunting Rosberg down in Italy and the USA to carry the advantage into the Abu Dhabi finale - and as if things weren't tense enough, there was the small matter of double points being on offer for the last round of the season...

Everything hung in the balance: Hamilton needed to finish in the top two to guarantee the title, but Rosberg piled on the pressure by claiming pole. The Briton hit back immediately, vaulting ahead at the start, but Rosberg shadowed him constantly for the first 22 laps - and then disaster struck. The German's ERS failed, and he began plummeting down the order, his title hopes obliterated. The German showed his class by fighting to the end, crossing the line in 14th - and then congratulating his triumphant team mate, who was now a two-time world champion.

Jenson Button says he will be treating this weekend's season finale in Abu Dhabi as his final Formula One Grand Prix.

The Briton announced he would not be racing in 2017 earlier this year, making way for Stoffel Vandoorne to partner Fernando Alonso - but he was insistent that he was not retiring and had an option to return in 2018, should both he and McLaren wish to do so.

Speaking on Thursday at the Yas Marina Circuit however, Button said he isn't anticipating trying to take up that option, and that his mindset is therefore that this weekend will be his F1 farewell.

"I go into this weekend thinking it will be my last race," Button said. "I think that's the best way to be.

"At this moment in time I don't want to be racing in F1 past this race, and that was the whole idea. So I think of this as my last race, and hopefully everyone else does as well.

"I don't want to go in thinking it isn't my last and it is my last. It is true I have a contract for 2018 but at this moment in time I am not going to be racing in 2018.

"The whole idea about having a contract is that in three months’ time, when I have eaten myself stupid and thinking of things to do in the future, maybe I realise I need F1 back in my life, but in this moment of time that isn't the case – so this is my last race."

Button said he can look back with intense pride on a career that has included 15 wins, 50 podiums and one world championship crown - and that will reach 305 Grand Prix starts in Abu Dhabi, just one behind Michael Schumacher and a tie of second all-time.

"I raced with two of the teams I dreamt of racing [with] as a kid, Williams and McLaren," he added.

"And when I did win the world championship it was with a privateer team [Brawn], which I think is also pretty special. Obviously a very memorable year in my life, and in the future something I will hopefully be telling my grandkids all about - that from nothing we ended up winning the world championship."

Their final word before the finale begins. (Abu Dhabi Grand Prix)

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2016.

Three days to go......

Lewis Hamilton trails Nico Rosberg by 12 points and admits he faces 'pretty impossible odds' ahead of the Duel in the Desert.

Fri 25 – Sun 27 Nov 2016

Practice 1        Fri         13:00 – 14:30

Practice 2        Fri         17:00 – 18:30

Practice 3        Sat        14:00 – 15:00

Qualifying        Sat        17:00 – 18:00

Race               Sun        17:00 – 19:00

YAS MARINA CIRCUIT

First Grand Prix: 2009
Number Of Laps: 55
Circuit Length: 5.554 KM
Race Distance: 305.355 KM
Lap Record: 1:40.279 Sebestian Vettel (2009)


2015 Results

The 2016 title permutations for Abu Dhabi.

For the second time in three years, Mercedes' Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton head into the Abu Dhabi season finale locked in a tense fight for the world championship crown. Unlike 2014, it is Rosberg who is the clear favourite given his 12-point lead - but there are still several ways Hamilton could come from behind to snatch the crown from his team mate.


Rosberg will win the 2016 crown if,

• He finishes on the podium in Abu Dhabi (regardless of where Hamilton finishes)
• He finishes sixth or higher, and Hamilton doesn't win
• He finishes eighth or higher, and Hamilton is no higher than third
• Hamilton finishes fourth or lower (regardless of where Rosberg finishes)

Hamilton will win the 2016 crown if,

• He triumphs, and Rosberg is fourth or lower
• He finishes second, and Rosberg finishes outside the top six
• He finishes third, and Rosberg finishes outside the top eight

Interestingly, Rosberg is the form man at the Yas Marina Circuit, even if Hamilton has the better overall record. The Briton has taken two poles (2009 and 2012) and two wins (2011, 2014) in Abu Dhabi - but Rosberg has been on pole for the last two straight years, and triumphed in last year's race.

Indeed, since they became team mates in 2013, Hamilton is yet to get the better of Rosberg in qualifying in Abu Dhabi - while the only time he has finished ahead of him on Sunday was in 2014, when Rosberg was famously hit with technical issues.

Source: http://www.formula1.com/