Thriller on the cards as rivals go down to the wire

WENTY-ONE freaking races — we have had 21 races this year, which is an all time high for the season, and I’m tired just thinking about it.

I haven’t even been travelling to all the races, so I can only imagine how bad the fatigue is for the teams.

Luckily we have a drivers’ championship going down to the wire this weekend.

The prospect of a mouthwatering Nico Rosberg versus Lewis Hamilton fight should help with the listlessness that usually accompanies this time of year.

On paper, it’s Nico Rosberg title to lose. He only needs to finish on the podium (regardless of where his teammate finishes) to be guaranteed his first F1 title.

It’s his to lose because of the Mercedes pace advantage they’ve had this year. The advantage they have at tracks like Abu Dhabi means he should only be racing Hamilton.

Unless something catastrophic happens to him, he should be able to easily drag his Silver Arrow home in second (and the world title) at worse.

For Hamilton, however, it’s more complicated. Not only does he need to win, but he also needs Rosberg to finish off the podium.

For me, he can’t rely on a Red Bull Racing or Ferrari getting in front of his teammate. I think he needs to try some thing different this weekend. In the past two races, Hamilton has just blasted away at the front and hoped that someone would get in between him and Rosberg.

That just won’t be enough this weekend, and he will have to think of alternative strategies if he wants to win.

For example, assuming he is leading and Rosberg is in second, he can’t just disappear off into the distance. He needs to think about backing his teammate into the others in the hope that they overtake him — It’s kind of of an offensive-defensive sort of driving.

The team won’t like it, and neither will Rosberg of course, but if Hamilton wants to win the title — these are the sorts of strategies he needs to consider.

I wish we could see a three-way fight with Red Bull Racing and Ferrari in the mix, but unfortunately the Abu Dhabi circuit should suit the Mercedes-powered cars very well, and I just do not see them mixing it with the Silver Arrows unfortunately.

I suppose Max Verstappen is the joker in the pack.

He drove the drive of the year in Brazil, and also has that unpredictable brilliance that makes him so watchable.

Unfortunately Abu Dhabi is in the desert and we won’t be expecting any rain this weekend.

However, it is still a drivers’ championship on the line, and while Rosberg may hold all the cards at the moment, this is the title decider and anything can happen in this grand finale.

Catch the writer,