- Hamilton 18th in qualifying thanks to dislodged bollard
- McLaren well-placed to win constructors’ title
Lando Norris claimed pole position for the final race of the Formula One season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix but it was a day to forget for Lewis Hamilton after he drove over a bollard in qualifying. McLaren’s Norris was in fine form at the Yas Marina circuit beating his teammate Oscar Piastri into second, ensuring the team are in prime position to seal the constructors’ championship, after what was a highly competitive qualifying session.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was in third and Haas’s Nico Hülkenberg hooked up an excellent lap to take fourth, with Max Verstappen in fifth for Red Bull. Hamilton, in his final meeting with Mercedes, was unlucky on his final hot lap, collecting a bollard dislodged by Kevin Magnussen under his car and was knocked out in 18th, while his teammate George Russell was seventh.