Race starts at 5:10 pm in Abu Dhabi/9:10 pm in Malaysia

It has been a challenging year for the Formula 1 World Championship with the first half the year seeing suspension of activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And once things improved and countries were willing to allow some events to run – with strict conditions – a revised calendar events was quickly drawn up. Some new tracks found to make up the venue numbers and, in some cases, two races were run at the same circuit over 2 consecutive weekends. This enabled the championship to have 17 rounds, starting in July and ending this weekend in Abu Dhabi.

The championship has not been without memorable moments, with Romain Grojean’s accident at the Sakhir Circuit in Bahrain being the most shocking. But fortunately, the many safety measures that had been devised over the years worked and helped prevent loss of life.

Lewis Hamilton will race
And then there was the episode of Lewis Hamilton, already confirmed as the 2020 World Champion, testing positive for COVID-19 and having to go into self-isolation. This resulted in him missing the second race in Bahrain, with his place taken by George Russell who was released from the Williams Racing team to drive for the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS team in Hamilton’s car.

Russell put in a fine performance, even getting ahead of team mate Valtteri Bottas. But a big mix-up of tyre-changing and then a puncture prevented Russell from what might have been victory or at least a podium finish. It was a huge disappointment to everyone, with the team being fined as well for the wrong fitment of tyres.

Hamilton was tested again this week and returned negative results and was permitted to leave Bahrain and enter Abu Dhabi, just an hour-plus away by air. He was pronounced fit enough to drive and so Russell returned to his team to race this weekend at the final round.

4,700 lights for evening race
This is the twelfth time since 2009 that the Yas Marina Circuit has been used for a F1 round, usually the season finale. It starts at 5:10 pm and the 55-lap race continues into twilight when 4,700 lights come on to provide illumination around the 5.554-km track.

The teams are obviously familiar with the circuit and how to set up for it. They have also come to understand how to make compensations for the differences in track temperatures that are higher during the early practices but cooler for qualifying and the race which occurs in the evening.

Low abrasion on circuit
Traction demands are high and abrasion is not, especially as there are no support races this year. Overtaking becomes more difficult as the race progresses, because the softer tyres – Pirelli will bring the three softest compounds to Abu Dhabi – produce a lot of marbles. This means there is a big loss of grip when running off the racing line.

There are 7 braking events at the Yas Marina Circuit and 2 of those are classified as ‘heavy’ (meaning the driver is braking for 0.4 seconds or longer, with 4g or more). It punishes the brakes, but the long straights allow them to cool, keeping temperatures at bay – unlike tracks such as Budapest where a relentless run of corners and lack of long straights make it difficult to cool the brakes.

The pit lane is the only one in F1 to feature a tunnel, with drivers passing under the circuit at the pit exit, in order for cars to rejoin on the left-hand side of Turn 2. Because the drivers are fed back onto the track during a corner, it can prove tricky to see other cars.

The championship battle
With 5 victories at this circuit since 2011, Lewis Hamilton has won the most times. Sebastian Vettel is second with 3 wins to his name. Mercedes-engined cars have won 7 times in 12 years, while Renault-engined cars have won 3 times.

While the crowns for the Drivers and Constructors titles have already been confirmed, there is still a great deal at stake in this final race of 2020. Max Verstappen is 16 points behind Bottas and could still finish off second in the championship.

While Red Bull Racing (to become Aston Martin Red Bull Racing in 2021) is secure in runner-up position, the order for third, fourth and fifth places remains undecided and will be fought between BWT Racing Point, McLaren and Renault.

Whatever gloom and doom was said about car sales in the first half of the year doesn’t seem to be the case the way sales have been going these past few months. Many have lost their jobs or have reduced incomes so the thinking is that consumer spending should go down, especially for things like new cars.

Yet companies are reporting strong sales and one of them is Honda Malaysia which says that its new Honda CR-V has seen a 180% increase in bookings within a month since its official launch in November 2020. This number – more than 1,700 units – has exceeded expectations. To-date, more than 1,300 customers have received their new SUV.

Of the three variants available, the CR-V 1.5 TC-P with 2WD (priced from RM157,615.91 without insurance) is the most popular, accounting for 46% of total bookings. The engine choices are a 2-litre 4-cylinder i-VTEC or 1.5-litre 4-cylinder turbocharged VTEC, and all engines come with a CVT. Only one variant has all-wheel drive. Incidentally, Dark Olive Metallic is the most preferred colour among the 5 colours, accounting for 30% of bookings.

“The New CR-V is an all-rounder SUV with a sporty driving experience that is suitable for different kinds of lifestyles; be it as a family car or daily commute for work. We believe the New CR-V is the ideal SUV for customers, especially families and professionals who have a discerning taste for SUV with top-notch specifications,” said Honda Malaysia’s Managing Director & CEO, Toichi Ishiyama.

Click here to read more about the new CR-V

Special Sales Rebate extended to end of month
The company has also announced that the ‘All-New City 12.12 Special Sales’ with a rebate worth RM2,000 has been extended to December 31, 2020. It was originally only for December 12, but Honda Malaysia is giving more time for customers to visit authorised Honda dealerships to view and test-drive the new model.

Customers can now book and register their cars by December 31, 2020 and they will be entitled for the rebate once the booking and registration requirements are met and completed (terms and conditions apply).

Commenting on the response to the new City, Mr. Ishiyama said that, since its launch, close to 5,800 units have been delivered from the factory in Melaka. “To date, we have received over 11,100 bookings for the All-New City and the ‘All-New City 12.12 Special Sales’ have been received,” he said.

“With the travel ban on inter-district and inter-state lifted since December 7, we acknowledge the feedback from our customers and understand that most customers would like to visit Honda dealers to test-drive the cars. Therefore, we have decided to extend the offer until December 31, 2020,” he explained, adding that the company endeavours to continue to work hard to meet customer demand and deliver the cars to all customers in a timely manner.

Mr. Ishiyama stressed that the well-being and safety of customers and Honda associates at dealerships is a priority. “We would like to emphasize that all Honda dealerships adhere to strict Standard Operating Procedures according to the guidelines set by the government,” he said.

To locate an authorised Honda dealership in Malaysia, visit www.honda.com.my.