Sebastian Vettel cruised to victory in India to extend his lead in the Drivers’ Championship and although Fernando Alonso battled to a damage-limiting second place, the Spaniard was left bemoaning Red Bull’s resurgence back to the summit of Formula One. However, twelve months ago in Abu Dhabi, Vettel failed to even complete the first lap after he suffered a puncture…

Lewis Hamilton returned to winning ways with a dominant victory in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Only one man looked winning from the moment Sebastian Vettel’s rear tyre burst as he approached the second turn of the race. Fernando Alonso in second gave it his best shot, although Hamilton looked in control even when the Ferrari driver stayed out for a long second stint. Jenson Button completed the podium for McLaren after losing KERS early in the race.

That man Sebastian Vettel clinched pole yet again, his fourteenth of the season – equalling Nigel Mansell’s 1992 record in the process (all be it over a longer season.) His late run of 1 minute 38.481s pushed the McLaren duo of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button back into second and third respectively by just over a tenth of a second. Questions remain, however, about the circuits ability to allow overtaking.

Lewis Hamilton set the pace in free practice as he led a McLaren 1-2 at the Yas Marina. A 1 minute 39.586s narrowly edged out team mate Jenson Button, a time that was notably 1.3 seconds faster than the comparable session last year. Ferrari weren’t far behind though, having struggled in the first session, although their best laps were set on Pirelli’s experimental 2012 soft compound…

Long viewed as a staid, bureaucratic outpost lacking neighboring Dubai’s razzmatazz, things started to change radically for Abu Dhabi in 2004 after Sheikh Khalifa became the ruler. Now the city is experiencing a construction boom, and the grand prix has helped put it on the cultural map.

On to Abu Dhabi, setting for the penultimate race and the longest weekend of the year – the teams will be staying on for the three-day young drivers’ test which starts next Tuesday. Before that, the focus is firmly on Sunday as Sebastian Vettel seeks to extend his dominating season while his main rivals hope to just add another victory to their tally.