ABU DHABI // With the sun setting over the glimmering Yas Hotel, Lewis Hamilton showed it should not be forgotten that he, too, can finish tomorrow's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as the 2010 world champion.
The Briton posted the fastest lap in yesterday's second practice session, circumnavigating the Yas Marina circuit in 1min 40.888secs.
The 2008 world champion had said he has nothing to lose this weekend. Even if he wins the race, as he must if he is to give himself any hope of being champion, he needs Fernando Alonso, the world championship leader, to finish outside the top 10, Mark Webber to be outside the top five and Sebastian Vettel to finish no better than third.
Not one of those three criteria were met in practice last night as it was Hamilton, Vettel, Alonso and Webber who turned the quickest laps. If they finish in that order in the race tomorrow, it is Alonso, Hamilton's former teammate at McLaren-Mercedes, who would claim his third world championship title.
Hamilton credited the return to form, as he looks for his first win since Belgium in August, to a new development of his car's rear wing
"I'm really, really happy," he said in the paddock last night. "We've been hoping for some time to improve this rear wing of ours. It's not really been working since [Japan] and so we've not really been able to use it.
"We know it's got better potential and finally it's working, so that's a huge plus for us.
"The car's feeling good today, I was feeling good in the car. I've been a little bit run-down, a little bit ill, but I'm on some meds now."
Hamilton's performance will have provided both Red Bull-Renault and Ferrari with a timely reminder that the driver's championship title is not a three-horse race.
Hamilton, understandably having played down his chances in Thursday's media briefing, last night proved his impressive performance in Abu Dhabi last year - when he dominated free practice and qualifying before being forced to retire from the race with brake problems - was no mere coincidence.
It was not a perfect day for Hamilton, though, as he escaped with a reprimand from the race stewards after he was adjudged to have cut across the path of Bruno Senna's Hispania Racing Team-Cosworth car going into the pits after he had run wide at the previous corner.
The day's earlier practice runs were in nearly complete contrast to those of the second session.
With the hype in full flow surrounding the championship-deciding battle, the excitement had been slowly intensifying as the four potential champions prepared in their pits in the early afternoon. A sprinkling of spectators had gathered in the stands to catch their first glimpse of the most glamorous vehicles in motorsport. But their enthusiasm was doused by a brief but heavy downpour which prompted the majority of the 12 teams to wait for the track to dry out. That made for an uneventful opening hour that saw only three of the 24 drivers post lap times.
When "the big boys" - as Nico Hulkenburg, the Williams-Cosworth driver, referred to Alonso, Webber, Vettel and Hamilton on Thursday - finally clocked some times, things heated up as quickly as the weather.
As expected, the Red Bull team impressed and it was Vettel who posted the faster lap with a time of 1.42.760.
Teammate Webber, who needs to beat Alonso tomorrow by nine points for him to secure his first drivers' championship, finished fourth. The Red Bull drivers sandwiched Hamilton and his McLaren teammate Jenson Button in second and third, respectively, while Alonso finished sixth.
A content Vettel said: "I am pretty happy, there is a bit of lap time still to gain and now we need to see - we have to see the pace of the other cars, and how strong we are in comparison to them. Hopefully, we can pick up the pace and look to tomorrow."
Alonso commented that, "We are reasonably pleased with the car's level of competitiveness and the fact it feels easy to drive, but we know there is more potential that can be extracted."
By the time the second session got under way, the sun was setting and the atmosphere had intensified. Felipe Massa, Alonso's teammate at Ferrari, was forced to withdraw after stopping on the side of the track following fuel issues; Webber overran Turn 1 after misjudging his brake line, before recovering. Webber, who completed the day's opening practice with the same engine that was overheating in Brazil, changed engines for the second session but finished fourth once more - this time sandwiching Vettel and Alonso in second and third.
Less than half a second separated the four protagonists, which probably explains why the Australian remained relaxed.
"The usual suspects are at the front," Webber said. "Lewis has done a pretty good lap - and it is a pretty good day. Where Fernando, Seb and I are, we are all pretty much on similar times, so after us four I didn't take much notice."
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
Schedule at Yas Marina
Today
10am – Gates open to ticket holders
11am – GP2 first race (33 laps)
12.45pm – Porsche GT3 Cup
Challenge qualifying
2pm – F1 final practice session
5pm – F1 qualifying session
Tomorrow
10am – Gates open
1.30pm – GP2 second race (22 laps)
2.45pm – Porsche GT3 Cup race (14 laps)
3.30pm – F1 drivers track parade
5pm – F1 Abu Dhabi GP (55 laps)
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
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In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
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Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm
Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Top speed: 250kph
Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km
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Creator: Mike White
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
