F1 Abu Dhabi GP: Teams arrive in UAE for season-ending race

All 10 teams have arrived for the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as drivers prepare to compete for the final time in 2024's record-breaking race calendar.

Yas Marina Circuit welcomed the teams just days after the Qatar Grand Prix which was won by Max Verstappen, his ninth victory of the season.

Although Verstappen and his Red Bull team secured the drivers' title in Las Vegas after a hard-fought campaign, the 2024 F1 World Constructors Championship is still up for grabs, and there will be no shortage of visitors to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the event expected to welcome 170,000 fans – its largest ever attendance.

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There's all to play for at the Abu Dhabi GP for McLaren and Ferrari – with only 21 points separating first and second place on the constructors' standings. Red Bull should maintain their third place lead over Mercedes, with a tight midfield offering plenty of scope for last-minute surprises lower down the order.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton will bring down the curtain on his Mercedes career in Abu Dhabi on Sunday as his past and future Formula One teams, McLaren and Ferrari, fight for a constructors' title.

Even if Red Bull's Verstappen secured his fourth successive championship last month in Las Vegas, eras will end with the final chequered flag of the season under the Yas Marina floodlights.

McLaren, who took Hamilton to his first title in 2008 but were last champions in 1998, are 21 points clear of Ferrari, the sport's oldest and most successful team chasing a first crown since 2008.

Whoever comes out on top will end a 15-year run where only Red Bull and Mercedes have won championships.

Hamilton, the most successful driver in the history of Formula One with seven titles and 105 wins, has been part of the Mercedes 'family' for 26 years but is joining Ferrari at the end of the month.

"This weekend is a celebration," said Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff. "A celebration of everything that we have accomplished together.

"We will honour this unparalleled story in Abu Dhabi and across the following week as we visit Kuala Lumpur, Stuttgart, then finally Brixworth and Brackley," he added, referring to the headquarters of sponsor Petronas and Mercedes and the two factories in England.

"And honour it knowing that, whilst this phase of our relationship is coming to an end, Lewis will always be a part of our family.

"For now, though, our full focus is on the race weekend. There is no better way to mark the end of our time together than with a strong performance on the track. The entire team is focused on adding one more highlight to the reel."

Hamilton, twice a winner this season, can only agree after the low of 12th in Qatar last Sunday with two penalties and a puncture.

"I’m still standing, it’s not how you fall, it’s how you get back up," the 39-year-old Briton said then.

McLaren, with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri showing plenty of team spirit, are favourites for the constructors' title but nothing can be taken for granted.

"Twenty-one points requires a perfect weekend from Ferrari and a bad weekend from McLaren," said Carlos Sainz ahead of what will be the Williams-bound Spaniard's last race for the Italian team alongside Charles Leclerc.

"We’re going to give it our best shot. I think if we nail a good weekend, we could still make it happen. Nothing to lose. We’re going to throw everything in to make sure we give ourselves the best chance."

Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur said his team would "fight until the last corner of the last lap".