Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: track and statistics

The idea of ​​building an autodrome in the capital of the United Arab Emirates was formalized in January 2006, when Hermann Tilke was commissioned to develop a modest three-kilometer circuit for regional racing. The project expanded every month and in the summer it was decided to complete it on the scale of Formula 1. As a result, the circuit on the artificial island of Yas became one of the most ambitious projects of the Tilke architectural firm at the time. .

Part of the route will be built along the dike. The height of the tide in Abu Dhabi does not exceed half a meter, there are practically no waves, so the site is almost at sea level, and wealthy spectators can watch the fight from moored yachts.

The project was initially based on duality: the first half of the track has all the signs of a stationary high-speed circuit, and the second consists of slow and medium-speed corners, more typical of an urban Grand Prix. That duality has also manifested itself in recent years in the schedule of the race, which starts in daylight and finishes after sunset. Qualifying and the race start at 5:00 PM local time and the sun sets at 5:34 PM.

The race in Abu Dhabi, which debuted in 2009, ended the season for two years, then lost this status, and from 2014 the organizers returned it. The right to take the last stage is the same pride for them as for the organizers of the stage in Melbourne, the status of the first race. This contributes to good ticket sales, as the race can decide the fate of the championship title – this was the case in 2014, in 2016 and 2021.

Follow features

The Abu Dhabi circuit has often been criticized for overtaking problems, and in 2020 this became particularly apparent. Due to the pandemic, the entertainment program was canceled, all attention turned to the race, which turned out to be rather boring due to the lack of competition. The organizers promised to solve the problem with a large-scale reconstruction. In 2021, the race was held for the first time in a new configuration, but that did not help much with overtaking.

Instead of slow 5-7 turns, a smoother left turn appeared. A forest of 11-14 turns was replaced by one profiled turn with a small bank angle, where cars accelerate up to 250 km / h, and riders can use different trajectories at the exit.

The track requires a medium level of downforce. The load on the brakes is quite large. In the race, pilots use a special visor for a comfortable transition from natural light to artificial light.

One of the interesting features is the tunnel at the exit of the pit lane, which starts already behind the speed limit. Initially, many were skeptical about this decision, as the car would be difficult to evacuate in the event of an accident, but so far there have been no serious problems.

Weekend schedule

You can follow the progress of all Formula 1 sessions on our live streaming page. We have written instructions for viewing live video broadcasts.

Tire sets given to teams for the weekend

In Abu Dhabi, for the sixth time this year, teams will receive the softest tires – C3, C4 and C5 as Hard, Medium and Soft.

One set of soft tires must be kept for the qualifying final – then those who drove in the final must return this set to Pirelli.

One set of Medium and Hard tires must be retained for the race – unless declared wet, riders must use at least one of these sets.

Performance of active pilots in Abu Dhabi

Esteban Ocon: “Last year the track was improved by widening the turn 7 hairpin and removing the chicane. The new corner replaced the 90-degree turns at the end of the straight. Overtaking has become a little easier, which is always interesting for drivers and fans. In general, I really enjoy playing here.”

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: all stages