Germany’s Nico Rosberg won his first
Formula One world championship on Sunday after finishing second in a tense Abu
Dhabi Grand Prix won by Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton
After all the suspense and expectation, the race saw
Hamilton chalking up his 10th win of the season, and fourth in a row, but
powerless to do anything about the championship outcome despite making every
effort.
His attempt to push Rosberg into the clutches of those
behind him, by deliberately slowing the pace in the closing laps to the concern
of team bosses, produced a nail-biting finish with the top four separated by
just 1.6 seconds.
Rosberg, who had needed only to finish in the top three to
be sure of the title, held position to become his country’s third champion
after Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.
The son of 1982 title-winner Keke Rosberg is also only the
second son of a world champion, after Britain’s Damon Hill, to take the crown.