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The drivers' championship has been decided a couple of races ago in favour of Lewis Hamilton while the constructors' championship went to Mercedes after they put on a strong show at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
With both the titles already decided, anyone thinking that the 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has nothing to offer must reconsider as there are still a lot of unanswered questions, whether it is teammate battles or positions in the drivers' championship.
Without further ado, let us look closer at the four things that still need to be settled during the final race of the season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
#4 Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo's battle for supremacy
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The Red Bull teammates will put all their friendships aside for the final race of the season as they would battle it out to decide the team rivalry. Both the drivers have two wins to their name this season and would want to secure a win in the final race of the Grand Prix to earn the bragging rights over their teammates.
Daniel Riccardo had a very favourable first half of the season that saw him claim two victories in the first six races of the season. The Australian's first win came at the Chinese Grand Prix while his second win came at the iconic Monaco Grand Prix. However, after that, Ricciardo couldn't even manage a single podium, with most of those chances getting squandered due to mechanical issues with the vehicle.
His teammate, Max Verstappen, on the other hand, tasted his first win of the season at the Austrian Grand Prix. Later, the Dutchman also went on to win at the Mexican Grand Prix, a race he won after starting from the front row. Verstappen almost had a victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix but failed to bring it home as he lost a couple of crucial places due to his scuffle with Force India's Esteban Ocon.
A win in the final race of the season would settle the rivalry for one last time. Moreover, this would be an extremely emotional race for Ricciardo as he would be leaving the Austrian team at the end of the 2018 season to join Renault for the upcoming Formula One season in 2019.
#3 Battle between the Ferrari drivers for the most podium finishes this season
Just like the drivers at the Red Bull team, the Ferrari teammates have a battle between them as well to decide the driver who finishes the 2018 Formula One season with the most podium finishes.
Sebastian Vettel started the 2018 season with supreme confidence as he cruised to victory in the first two races of the race calendar. However, since then, the German driver failed to reciprocate his consistency, which cost him numerous podium finishes, and ultimately the 2018 drivers' championship.
His poor judgement during the German Grand Prix, the Italian Grand Prix and the Japanese Grand Prix highlight some of the four-time world champion's troubles this season. Nevertheless, Sebastian Vettel recorded eleven podiums this season, which allowed him to cement himself in the second place on the drivers' championship table.
Kimi Raikkonen had an equally good start to the 2018 Formula One season as the Finn recorded three podiums in the first four races of the season. Raikkonen's consistency during the halfway mark allowed him to claim five podium finishes in a row.
However, the Finn hit his form at the United States Grand Prix, winning the race with a dominating performance. With three consecutive podium finishes, Kimi Raikkonen would want to secure another podium at the final race of the season to take his overall tally to thirteen podiums, which would be a perfect farewell for Ferrari as he would move to Sauber at the end of the current season.
#2 Fight for the most wins at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix hosted its inaugural Formula One race in 2009 and featured on the Formula One calendar since then. The day-night race makes winning at the Yas Marina Circuit a real challenge; however, a couple of drivers have managed the art of driving under these difficult conditions to claim three wins each. Interestingly, both these drivers occupy the top-two places on the drivers' championship table.
Driving for the Red Bull, Sebastian Vettel won the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009. A win in the 2010 race ensured that he is the only driver to record consecutive race wins at this venue till date. After a brief hiatus of two years, the German driver returned to the top step of the podium during the 2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
His nemesis Lewis Hamilton's first win came in 2011 while driving for McLaren. His next win at this spectacular venue came in 2014 with the Silver Arrows. Mercedes have won every race at this track since then. After a win at the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the Briton would be hoping to return to winning ways in this year's race.
#1 Third place in the drivers' championship
The drivers' championship might have been settled a couple of races ago. However, the fight for the third place in the drivers' championship is still very much live at the final race of the 2018 Formula One season.
Currently, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen is in the third place with 251 points on the table, followed by Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen. The entire situation could change at the Abu Grand Prix, with these three drivers in the mix for the third place in the drivers' championship.
Raikkonen finishing ahead of both of the drivers would seal the third place in his favour. Other scenarios with Raikkonen coming out on top include Bottas taking the win and the Finn finishing fourth or better; or Verstappen taking the win and Raikkonen finishing fifth or better.
Bottas could wrestle the place away from the Finn if he finishes ahead of Max Verstappen in the third place or better and Kimi Raikkonen crosses the line in a position no better than the tenth place.
The 21-year-old Dutchman driving for Red Bull will secure the third spot if he finishes second or better with Bottas finishing fourth or lower and Ferrari's Raikkonen finishing outside the points.
