F1 champ Verstappen faces little challenge in capturing 15th race of season

A year after one of the most controversial finishes in the history of Formula One, Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was anything but.

Max Verstappen, as usual this season, was far ahead of the rest on his way to a record-extending 15th win of the season.

"Incredible to win again here, 15th win of the season is unbelievable," Verstappen said. "It's been really enjoyable to work with the whole team and to be able to achieve something like this this year."

At the track where he beat Lewis Hamilton last year — after a restart call that is still hotly disputed to this day —Verstappen held off his teammate Sergio Perez at the start and didn't face a serious challenge after that in the season-ending race.

Instead, much of the attention was on retiring four-time champion Sebastian Vettel battling in the midfield pack in his final race, while a hydraulic problem ended Lewis Hamilton's race for Mercedes as the seven-time champion finished an F1 season without a win for the first time in his career.

"I am very pleased it is over and done with," Hamilton said. "I gave it everything, but ultimately the last race was like my whole season. It summed up my year."

There was potential for a fight for second place on track and in the championship standings, but little real drama.

Perez and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc came into the race equal on points, just like Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton did last year. Leclerc got past Perez by opting for one less pit stop and managed his old tires so that Perez couldn't get close enough to try an overtake.

'Different strategy'

That thwarted Red Bull's bid to have its drivers place first and second, as Leclerc finished three points ahead of Perez in the standings. It meant Verstappen's refusal to yield sixth place to his teammate at the last race in Brazil — which left Red Bull facing questions over an apparent rift in the team and was followed by a wave of abusive comments on social media aimed at Verstappen and his family — turned out not to be decisive at the end of the season.

"I knew the only possibility to beat Checo [Perez] today was with a different strategy and playing with the tire management, which we did really well today," Leclerc said. "I really hope next year we can do a step forward to fight for the championship."

Leclerc and Ferrari seemed able to challenge Verstappen for the title at the start of the season, but Red Bull improved its car performance advantage through the season. Errors on the track from Leclerc and in Ferrari's race strategy held them back too.

Carlos Sainz was fourth in the other Ferrari, while George Russell was fifth despite a five-second penalty when the Mercedes team released him from a pit stop into the path of another car.

Lando Norris was sixth for McLaren, ahead of Alpine's Esteban Ocon, Aston Martin's Lance Stroll of Montreal and Norris' teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who is without a race contract for 2023 and is likely to be Red Bull's reserve driver next year.

Vettel placed 10th for Aston Martin as he retires from F1 after 16 years.

Champion, activist bids farewell

Before the race, Vettel lined up for the national anthem wearing a T-shirt with a picture of Earth, a nod to his environmental activism. Then eight jets flew overhead trailing colourful smoke.

It was a moment that highlighted the delicate balance the four-time F1 champion treads as a lifelong auto racing fan increasingly uneasy at the toll his passion takes on the planet.

"It's a huge privilege being in the position that we are in and with that comes some responsibility. So I hope to pass on a little bit to the other drivers to carry on some of the good work. It's great to see that we have the power to inspire you with what we do and what we say," Vettel said after the race.

"I think there's far bigger and far more important things than racing in circles, but obviously it's what we love. And through that, if we can transfer some of the really important values, then that's big."

A champion four years running with Red Bull from 2010 through 2013, Vettel has more recently used his high profile in F1 to support human rights and highlight environmental causes such as bee die-offs and the mining of oil from tar sands in Canada, even as his Aston Martin team is sponsored by Saudi oil giant Aramco.

Vettel is keen to spend more time with his family instead of being away for weeks at a time when the F1 calendar expands to 24 races next year.

After spinning his car in "donuts" to cheers from the crowd, Vettel said he felt "empty" at the realization his career was finally ending. "So many flags, so many smiling faces which has been very, very special, very nice," he said. "I'm sure I'm going to miss more than I understand right now."