Hamilton and Rosberg set for thrilling finale in Abu Dhabi

Matt Majendie 05:47 03/08/2014
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  • Need for speed: Hamilton stays ahead of Rosberg in Bahrain during one of their many battles so far this season.

    It is a week into Formula 1’s summer break, so where do we stand with eight races left?

    Lewis Hamilton signed off in Hungary “very, very shocked” his Mercedes team had asked him to let team mate Nico Rosberg past, while the German packed up his driving overalls for a few weeks content with an 11-point lead in the race for the title.

    Mercedes are the story of 2014 so far and the pair have dominated to the detriment of their age-old friendship. Quite where it ends is anyone’s guess but most likely in a double points all-or-nothing dash to the chequered flag at the seasonending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

    The events in Hungary have left Formula 1 fans salivating over the return of the grid at Spa in three weeks time. Mercedes faltered, Hamilton and Rosberg finishing third and fourth respectively while Daniel Ricciardo won his second grand prix in five.

    Could the unthinkable happen and the Australian sneak up and catch the Mercedes, napping, scrapping and squabbling their way to the season’s finish? Unfortunately for Ricciardo, the Renault engine is probably too unreliable for Red Bull to truly have those aspirations.

    It would take a Mercedes meltdown of epic proportions for Hamilton and Rosberg not to be vying for the overall honours come 23 November at Yas Marina.

    This was supposed to be a season of change, new regulations introduced in part to halt the Red Bull hegemony of the past four seasons as well as making F1 greener.

    The roaring V8 engines were replaced by V6 turbo-charged ones, and suddenly everyone was complaining about the lack of noise. F1 hadn’t quite gone silent but the dip in volume certainly took away from the overall spectacle. As for the anticipated seismic change, it has not quite been there, merely a shifting of the dominant force. For Red Bull in seasons 2010 to 2013, read Mercedes 2014.

    There have been some occasionally dull processions but there have been pulsating battles too such as Rosberg and Hamilton’s head-to-head at the Bahrain Grand Prix and the jostling for position behind them, which Hamilton won. Then there was the Canadian Grand Prix, a race that always intrigues but one that this time left all involved breathless.

    So far, Mercedes have dominated. They have nine wins and 10 pole positions from 11 races, Ricciardo the only other driver to have been victorious this season.

    Ricciardo deserves special mention, comfortably defying even his staunchest allies’ expectations by repeatedly outdoing four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel in qualifying and the races.

    The other feel-good stories of the season at its half-way junction are Williams’ resurgence from their horror year 12 months ago as Valtteri Bottas edges ever closer to a first win and the points of Jules Bianchi at the Monaco Grand Prix that gives the Marussia team the sort of lifeline in terms of financial backing – should of course they stay ninth in the standings – that allows them to dare to dream a little more.

    But it is at the other end of the grid where all eyes are firmly gazing. Who at Eau Rouge on 24 August will have the upper hand?

    More importantly will it be Hamilton celebrating a second world title at the season finish or will Rosberg win his first crown? It has the makings for one of the great battles in F1 history.

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