F1 Abu Dhabi GP: Top 5 most memorable moments

The 15th edition of the F1 Abu Dhabi GP will take place this weekend to conclude yet another season of the sport. Since the beginning of the turbo hybrid era in 2014, the track has held every single season finale to date.

The track was first introduced in the racing calendar in 2009, with Sebastian Vettel winning the inaugural race in the desert. The track, over 15 years, has provided some of the most memorable moments in modern F1 history.

Below is the five most memorable moments in Abu Dhabi GP history:

F1 2021 season finale

The season finale of the 2021 season will arguably go down as one of the most controversial in the history of F1. The track played host to one of the closest and most iconic championship battles of modern Formula One history, with Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton coming to the race tied on points.

The Mercedes driver's dominant run in the sport was ended by the young Dutch driver in controversial circumstances. But the last lap, which decided the title, will go down as the best racing the track had seen since its inception.

Hamilton-Rosberg 2016 title fight

In the 2016 season, Hamilton and his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg had been involved in one of the most tense championship battles in recent history. The final couple of laps of the race saw the British driver controlling the lead and pushing Rosberg into the chasing pack to help his cause, but to no avail.

The iconic four-way battle in 2010

Heading into the 2010 season finale in Abu Dhabi, the race saw four title contenders in Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton gunning for the title. The German driver held on to his advantage after starting from pole and won the race for the second consecutive time, bagging his and Red Bull's maiden title in the sport.

The Return of the 'Iceman'

Kimi Raikkonen returned to Formula One after a two-year hiatus from the sport in the 2012 season and quickly showcased that he had not lost any of his iconic speed around the track. The comeback got the icing on the cake it deserved, as the Fin won the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in trademark fashion and completed his fairy tale in the desert.

Fernando Alonso's 'retirement' from the sport

After his four-year struggle at McLaren, the two-time world champion announced that he would be stepping away from the pinnacle of motorsport at the end of the 2018 season. However, he would return to F1 in 2021, and the sending-off he got from two of his closest rivals, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton, on the home straight will long live in the memory of fans, as three of the best F1 drivers did donuts.