F1 Abu Dhabi GP Odds, Live Stream & Predictions

One of the highly anticipated F1 finales in contemporary history is here. Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit will witness the action from 10th to 12th December 2021. The final race is on Sunday. Toto Wolff is worried about things getting messy and rightfully so. The last few races saw some rash encounters between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.

Hamilton was lagging in the drivers’ championship before Brazil, since then, he has won three races in a row. The scores are tied now between the rivals, but Verstappen leads on the number of wins. He will still win the race if neither finishes Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Yas Marina Circuit is located in Yas Island and was designed by Hermann Tilke. It is a part of Abu Dhabi’s grand plan of making Yas Island the entertainment centre. The longest straight in the circuit lies between turns 5 and 6. The circuit length is 5.281 km.

Live Streaming

In the UK, Sky Sports is the official broadcaster of Formula 1 this year, the online platform Sky Sports F1 will stream the races. Besides, the European audience can watch the event live on their gadgets through the Sky Go application.

ESPN channel provides live coverage in the United States, the millennial F1 fans can live stream the event ESPN+ OTP platform.

Indian subcontinent can witness the race in Star Sports network in the comfort of their homes. Disney+ Hotstar has procured the rights for broadcast on their platform.

In Australia, Fox Sports and Network Ten broadcast the live event.

Play Sports is the go-to network for Max Verstappen’s fans in his home, Belgium.

Additionally, bet365.com streams the event live for active bettors on race day.

 Formula 1 Outright Odds

Abu Dhabi GP Schedule

Thursday 9th December

Friday 10th December

Saturday 11th December

Sunday 12th December

* Please note that this timetable is subject to amendments

Predictions:

As expected, Jeddah stopped a little short of a disaster. Five drivers didn’t finish the race, Sergio Perez is one among them. Keeping the wheels inside the track and overtaking were meticulous tasks. The stewards had to intervene twice in the Verstappen-Hamilton situation. The Dutchman slid off the track to gain positions and was ordered to give it up later to Hamilton. Miscommunication created a melee, Hamilton collided with Red Bull’s rear. Verstappen was quick to retake the lead but Hamilton managed to finish first.

The Rashomon effect played out in the press conference after and made everyone realize the heat. Valtteri Bottas overtook Esteban Ocon milliseconds before the finishing line at Jeddah. He currently sits third in the Drivers’ championship and is a good 28 points ahead of Sergio Perez. Mercedes leads the constructor standings, 28 points separating them from Red Bull. Any prediction about the final output literally has a 50-50 chance. Such is the quality in the circuit. By this time last year, the title was already decided upon and teams were fighting for the constructor’s championship. If Hamilton wins, this will be the greatest achievement of his career. If Max wins, it might be the start of a new era. In this case, choosing a favourite is a wise decision. Socially responsible and vocal, Lewis Hamilton deserves an eighth title.

F1 rules 2021 & teams

Significant changes in the FIA rules include a further decrease in the minimum cost cap. Last year’s cap of $175 million is reduced to $145 million.

Lower order teams will be allowed more internal test runs than the top order teams. Chassis & suspension won’t receive major innovations for the year. Big fishes in the sea are prohibited from massive power unit upgrades.

The FIA decided that the teams will race with the same cars from the past season, the new era is postponed to 2022. All machines will feature the 1.6 litre V6 turbo hybrid engine.

Perhaps the most nightmarish regulation for Mercedes will be the prohibition of slots, holes and any design tweaks at the floor in front of the rear tire. An original cut will be maintained.

Tracks saw an immense increase in downforce throughout last year. FIA keeps a check on that, the machines will have to reduce their downforce by 10 per cent.

The dual Axis Steering (DAS) system, the brainchild of Mercedes, will be abandoned. Lewis Hamilton will have to keep W12’s toes straight in the track.

The minimum weight of the F1 cars is increased by 3 kg, while the 749-kilogram baseline will make the giants’ frown, a parallel increase of the power unit to 150 kg will compensate for it.

No stone is left unturned, the strakes of the diffuser will be shortened by 50 millimetres.

Scraping all the problems they had in last season and getting an edge over the Silver Arrows through a rule change, Red Bull appear a threat to Mercedes’ eighth world championship. As it turns out, Red Bull’s high-rake angle and new floor regulation have paired well.