YAS MARINA CIRCUIT, Abu Dhabi: The second F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix practice session on Friday ended with Lewis Hamilton topping the timing sheet with a lap of 1:23.691, ahead of Esteban Ocon, teammate Valtteri Bottas, and title rival Max Verstappen who ended the second practice session 0.641 seconds behind Hamilton.
As drivers were adjusting to the newly formatted track at Yas Marina Circuit, the revamped hotel section saw Valtteri Bottas nudging the edge of the wall before Kimi Raikkonen ended the practice session early following contact with the Turn 14 barrier.
The Alfa Romeo team will now be working hard overnight to have the Finn back on track tomorrow for the final qualifying session of his career.
Hamilton and Verstappen remain neck and neck after Verstappen took the quickest lap in the first session earlier on Friday.
The stage is set for tomorrow’s final practice session of the year before qualifying gets underway at 5pm.
Hamilton and Verstappen are equal on points in the world championship standings and will need to outperform their rival to be crowned world champion for 2021.