Jack Leslie F1: 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix In Pictures

The Yas Marina Circuit is one of two day-to-night races on the F1 calendar and the unusual schedule creates some spectacular photographs.

Nico Rosberg beat his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton to win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and end the 2015 season on a high. Here's the race weekend in pictures.

All images in this article are courtesy of Octane Photographic, you can see more of their work here.

Friday

Jolyon Palmer completed his final FP1 session as Lotus reserve driver, ahead of his F1 debut next season.

Due to first practice taking place in bright sunshine, many teams opted to use the 90-minute session to test parts and gather data.

Hamilton got his weekend off to a strong start by setting the pace in first practice at the Yas Marina Circuit.

Carlos Sainz Jr was one of several drivers to suffer mechanical issues on Friday, with his Toro Rosso grounding to a halt at the end of practice two.

The setting sun in FP2 created some stunning images of the F1 action, as day turned to night in Abu Dhabi.

Conditions were much more representative in second practice and Rosberg found himself at the top of the timesheets.

Saturday

Hamilton suffered a spin mid-way through third practice and ended the session in second place.

McLaren enjoyed a more competitive showing in practice, with Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso featuring around the top 10.

Rosberg was quickest once again in FP3, leading his team-mate and Sebastian Vettel in the Ferrari.

Sparks were a common sight in practice and qualifying, looking even more spectacular under the floodlights.

There was a big shock in the first segment of qualifying, with a misjudgement causing Vettel to be eliminated. He was joined by Alonso, who picked up a puncture, and Marcus Ericsson.

Roberto Merhi returned to F1 after being replaced by Alexander Rossi for a few races. He qualified 20th, behind his team-mate Will Stevens.

Max Verstappen was the first driver to be eliminated in Q2. He was joined by Button, Pastor Maldonado, Felipe Nasr and Romain Grosjean.

Kvyat suffered an electrical issue in FP3 and lost track time, meaning he struggled in qualifying and was ninth quickest in Q3, just ahead of Sainz Jr.

Sergio Perez kept up Force India's strong form to qualify fourth, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo, Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hulkenberg and Felipe Massa.

Rosberg was quick throughout practice, so it was hardly surprising that he took his sixth consecutive pole position. Hamilton and Raikkonen completed the top three.

Sunday

Hamilton was presented with the award for most fastest laps ahead of the race.

The 2015 field then gathered for the end-of-season class photo, differing slightly to the picture taken in Australia prior to the season opener, which did not include Alonso or Bottas.

The grid got very crowded as the cars lined up in their grid positions and final checks were completed.

A spectacular and stunning fly-over took place before the on-track action kicked off on Sunday.

Rosberg had a strong start to lead into Turn 1, while Hamilton had to fend off Raikkonen after a slow getaway.

The leader was able to immediately pull out a small advantage, while behind Alonso and Maldonado collided.

Maldonado spun following the contact, while Alonso managed to keep his McLaren pointing in the right direction.

Alonso continued on, but he picked up a puncture and damaged his front wing, which forced him to pit.

Maldonado wasn't so lucky and he became the race's first and only retirement, thanks to broken suspension.

Rosberg quickly opened up a small lead over Hamilton and extended his advantage through the first stint.

Perez and Hulkenberg made good starts and ran fourth and fifth at one stage, before the latter lost positions to Vettel and Ricciardo.

Kvyat struggled slightly in the early stages and it later emerged that he had an electrical issue, which prevented him from finishing higher than 10th.

Nasr was caught up in the lap one chaos and had to pit early for a front wing, which compromised his race.

Ricciardo showed decent pace in his Red Bull but he couldn't get close enough to pass Perez and had to settle for sixth.

Hamilton's middle stint was a long one as he tried a different strategy, but it failed to work out.

The race was quickly followed by a spectacular fireworks show, as the drivers headed back to the pit lane on the slow-down lap.

Rosberg celebrated his first hat-trick of victories, ending the season with the best result possible.

Hamilton and Raikkonen completed the podium, with Vettel, Perez, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Massa, Grosjean and Kvyat completing the top 10.

30 November 2015

2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix In Pictures

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