4–6 Dec · Abu Dhabi · Round 23
Weekend previewAbu Dhabi Grand Prix 2026 predictions
The last race of the season, run from daylight into night at Yas Marina on the softest tyres Pirelli makes, where one stop is usually enough.
- Practice 1
- Fri 4 Dec, 13:30
- Practice 2
- Fri 4 Dec, 17:00
- Practice 3
- Sat 5 Dec, 14:30
- Qualifying
- Sat 5 Dec, 18:00
- Grand Prix
- Sun 6 Dec, 17:00
The Yas Marina Circuit
The lap is 5.281 km with 16 corners, and the Grand Prix runs for 58 laps. The 1.2 km straight between the slow Turns 5 and 6 is where most of the overtaking happens, and the run through Turns 10, 11 and 12 asks the drivers to brake hard with the car still loaded up sideways. The surface is made with aggregate shipped from England and gives medium grip and medium abrasion; Turns 1 to 4 were resurfaced in 2025 to take out some bumps. Formula 1’s circuit page (opens in a new tab) and Pirelli’s circuit notes (opens in a new tab).
Two of the three practice sessions run in daylight, qualifying runs in the dark, and the race starts at sunset, so the track temperature falls through the sessions that matter and the grip changes with it. Support races including Formula 2 share the track, so it rubbers in quickly over the weekend. It is the circuit the drivers know best, because the post-season test has been held here for years. Pirelli’s 2024 preview (opens in a new tab) and Pirelli’s 2025 preview (opens in a new tab).
The softest tyres, and usually one stop
Pirelli brings its three softest compounds, C3, C4 and C5, as it has for years, because there are no high-speed corners and the loads on the tyres are low to medium. Yas Marina used to grain the tyres, but since 2024 that has been limited enough that Pirelli thought even the soft, normally a qualifying tyre, could be part of a race plan. Degradation here is thermal and shows on the rears, from the traction demands of the final sector. Pirelli’s 2025 preview (opens in a new tab).
In 2024, 19 of the 20 drivers started on the medium and the one-stop onto the hard was the quickest way through; only Fernando Alonso in the top ten stopped twice. The undercut is strong here, which is what makes a one-stop need careful tyre management to hold off a rival who stops first. Pirelli on the 2024 race (opens in a new tab) and Pirelli on the undercut (opens in a new tab).
Norris took the 2025 title from third place
Max Verstappen took pole and led from the start. On the first lap Oscar Piastri went around the outside of his team-mate Lando Norris at Turn 9, on the harder tyre, and dropped Norris to third. Norris then had Charles Leclerc within a second behind him, traffic to clear after an early first stop, and a defence from Yuki Tsunoda that cost Tsunoda a five-second penalty. Verstappen pitted once, from medium to hard, and won by twelve seconds. Piastri ran a long first stint on the hard, led after Verstappen stopped, and finished second. Norris held third, which was enough for the title by two points. The 2025 race report (opens in a new tab).
The official top five was Verstappen, Piastri, Norris, Leclerc and George Russell. The win was Verstappen’s fifth here, level with Lewis Hamilton, who also has five poles at Yas Marina. The official classification (opens in a new tab) and Pirelli’s statistics (opens in a new tab).
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Championship standings
After 17 rounds, Kimi Antonelli leads the drivers’ table by 102 points from George Russell. 5 rounds still have to be scored, so this table will change before Abu Dhabi.
Unscored rounds
Drivers
After 17 rounds- 1Kimi Antonelli340 pts
- 2George Russell238 pts
- 3Lewis Hamilton229 pts
- 4Max Verstappen221 pts
- 5Charles Leclerc215 pts
- 6Lando Norris201 pts
Scored through round 17, updated 11 Oct 2026.
Common questions
When is the 2026 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?
The race starts at 17:00 Gulf time on Sunday 6 December 2026. Practice begins on Friday 4 December, and qualifying starts at 18:00 on Saturday 5 December.
Who won the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix?
Max Verstappen, from pole. Oscar Piastri was second and Lando Norris third, which was enough for Norris to win the 2025 title by two points.