Spectators at Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will see history made as for the first time in Formula One's 60-year history four drivers will fight it out to be crowned world champion.
The second staging of the race at Yas Marina Circuit is a fitting occasion for what is sure to be a gripping finale to what has been one of the most absorbing and unpredictable seasons in the championship's history.
After an exciting year that has seen the title lead change hands 10 times, Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton could all walk away from Abu Dhabi as the man who succeeds Jenson Button as champion.
With a number of fascinating permutations and scenarios, the 55-lap race looks as if it will be a real thriller, and Richard Cregan, Yas Marina Circuit's chief executive officer, is delighted his track is going to be the scene of the decider.
"I think we have a real race on our hands this weekend and Abu Dhabi will get to crown the new world champion," he said.
The constructors' championship had been won by Red Bull-Renault in Brazil on Sunday and Cregan added: "Now this is the big race that everyone can focus on winning. It is obviously going to put pressure on the drivers and they won't even have much time to get over the jet lag because they all start to arrive on Tuesday. It will be a great race."
The Ferrari World indoor theme park opened earlier this month on Yas Island, an occasion that could be crowned by a Ferrari driver winning the drivers' title.
Fernando Alonso, the double world champion, has an eight-point lead coming to Abu Dhabi. The Spaniard has bounced back from a difficult first half of the campaign to win four of the past eight races and of the four still in contention he is the only driver who has his destiny in his own hands. If he finishes first or second he is guaranteed to take the title and complete a remarkable first year with his Italian employers.
But he will have to work hard to achieve this as he will be up against the Red Bull drivers, Webber and Vettel, who have had the fastest car at most circuits in 2010. Fresh from their one-two victory in Brazil, they will be keen to repeat Vettel's win last year at the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Of the Red Bull pair, Webber, only eight points behind Alonso, has the best chance of becoming champion. The Australian has had the strongest season of his career and his consistency has seen him not outside the top two in the championship since August. For him, though, a win alone will not be enough: he needs someone other than Alonso to finish second.
His teammate Vettel may be the only one of the four men in contention not to have led the championship outright at any stage but, trailing Alonso by just 15 points, he still has his own realistic title aspirations. The German can be champion if he repeats his 2009 success at Yas Marina and Alonso is outside the top five.
The dynamic between Vettel and Webber is finely balanced and promises to add to the excitement at Abu Dhabi. If Vettel won with Webber second, as happened in Sao Paulo on Sunday, they would finish level on points but the German would take the title by virtue of having more race wins - both men have four apiece coming into this weekend.
Vettel, who has out-paced Webber in the past five races, will be confident of getting the better of his teammate, with whom he has had a strained relationship ever since they collided in Turkey in May, but the win would not be enough for him without Alonso having problems. If Vettel is leading Webber in the latter stages of the race with their Ferrari rival running in the top four, then it is likely he will cede position to allow his teammate to take the title.
Reigning champion Jenson Button saw his 2010 championship hopes expire in Brazil, leaving his predecessor Lewis Hamilton the only Briton still in contention. Hamilton, however, faces the toughest task of the four still in the running. The McLaren-Mercedes driver is 24 points behind Alonso and not only has to win but also must see his former teammate fail to finish in the points.
And that's not all; he cannot have Webber finish in the top five or Vettel in the top two if he is going to make it a British champion for a third successive year.
Sunday's race at Abu Dhabi is, of course, about more than just the championship contenders and will see four new or rebranded teams from last year - BMW Sauber-Ferrari, Lotus-Cosworth, Virgin-Cosworth and Hispania Racing Team-Cosworth (HRT).
Michael Schumacher, the seven-times world champion, will also make his first appearance at Yas Marina in a racing capacity as he completes his first year back in the sport with Mercedes GP since coming out of retirement.
Other drivers new to Abu Dhabi spectators will be Felipe Massa (Ferrari), Nico Hulkenberg (Williams-Cosworth), Vitaly Petrov (Renault), Lucas di Grassi (Virgin), Bruno Senna (HRT) and Sakon Yamamoto (HRT).
With a number of seats for next season still up for grabs, notably at Williams and Renault, some drivers will be looking to impress in Abu Dhabi to secure drives. Nevertheless, it is the four title contenders who will have the most to gain and lose when the red lights go out to signal the start of the second Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday.
HOW TO WATCH
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. OPTA'S PREDICTED TABLE
1. Liverpool 101 points
2. Manchester City 80
3. Leicester 67
4. Chelsea 63
5. Manchester United 61
6. Tottenham 58
7. Wolves 56
8. Arsenal 56
9. Sheffield United 55
10. Everton 50
11. Burnley 49
12. Crystal Palace 49
13. Newcastle 46
14. Southampton 44
15. West Ham 39
16. Brighton 37
17. Watford 36
18. Bournemouth 36
19. Aston Villa 32
20. Norwich City 29
More on animal trafficking
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Elvis
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
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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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Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
Company Profile
Name: JustClean
Based: Kuwait with offices in other GCC countries
Launch year: 2016
Number of employees: 130
Sector: online laundry service
Funding: $12.9m from Kuwait-based Faith Capital Holding
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
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Transmission: 8-speed automatic
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On sale: Available for preorder now
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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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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"
Specs
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Range: 400km
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
