Abu Dhabi GP driver ratings

Just where was this Nico Rosberg through the rest of 2015? The German was, on the whole, a class above his team-mate in Abu Dhabi, delivering one of the laps of the year to thump the world champion by almost four tenths in qualifying before opening up a six-second lead by the first round of pit-stops. That was impressive; less so his second stint when he was reeled in by Hamilton and saw his advantage fall to just a second. Would Rosberg have won the race had Mercedes put Hamilton on a more aggressive strategy? A definitive answer will never be known, but social media wasn't shy in crying foul.

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff declared afterwards Rosberg had simply been the quicker driver, but there was nevertheless an appropriateness to the general disquiet. Despite his soothing hat-track of victories in the final throes, 2015 must be considered more bitter than sweet for Nico. The jury still remains out on whether he has it what takes to win a world championship.
Rating out of ten: 9

2015 ends for Lewis Hamilton in a curious state. The world championship has been retained but Hamilton's winter cannot be entirely devoid of unease after his mysterious end-of-season slump in which he failed to find a fix for the handling imbalance triggered by post-Singapore set-up changes to his previously unbeatable W06. 

Hamilton did, however, look a little like his pre-title self mid-race in Abu Dhabi as he all-but wiped out Rosberg's lead with a blistering charge only to be outdone by what must be considered a botched strategy from the perspective of Hamilton's victory hopes and entertainment but was perfectly sound for delivering another Mercedes one-two. And therein, perhaps, is the crux of the problem with the size of Mercedes' current superiority and what Damon Hill rues as F1's "data-driven" era. 
Rating out of ten: 6.5

Credit where it's due. While third place was no more than Kimi Raikkonen ought to have produced in Abu Dhabi once his team-mate was effectively removed from the podium equation by exiting from Q1, it was also as much as was realistically achievable with Ferrari both distant second best to Mercedes but a class above Red Bull and Force India.

After a lacklustre year, Raikkonen's third podium finish of the season will be a useful comfort blanket through a long winter but also paid a tangible dividend in the final standings as the Finn beat compatriot Valtteri Bottas to the respectability of fourth in the Drivers' Championship.
Rating out of ten: 8

Ending the year on a high after a rare miscalculation in qualifying, fourth at the chequered flag from 15th on the grid amounted to a commendable damage-limitation salvation from Sebastian Vettel. "This was the best result we could have achieved," the former world champion told Sky F1 afterwards.

But the line of the day went to Ferrari Technical Director James Allison as he heaved a huge sigh of relief over Vettel's recovery following his early exit in Q1: "It was my hideous screw-up, it was completely my fault!". Allison owes him one - how about a title-contending car next year?
Rating out of ten: 8

What a shame for Sergio Perez that the year is ending so soon. The driver of the second-half of 2015, the Mexican was faultless in Abu Dhabi. With his car, a B-spec version which seems to suit Perez more than his team-mate, instantly dialled in around the Yas Marina Circuit, Perez was third fastest in Friday practice, fourth in qualifying, and fifth when it counted - an outstanding display of consistency to leave him 20 points clear of Nico Hulkenberg in the final reckoning for 2015.
Rating out of ten: 9

Nearly but not quite for Daniel Ricciardo. Despite excellent drives in both qualifying and the race, sixth place in Abu Dhabi wasn't sufficient for the Australian to overhaul his team-mate in the Drivers' Championship. In the unofficial words of his admiring Red Bull team, there was nothing more Ricciardo could have done and nobody should think anything less of his talent for his defeat to Kvyat in what has been a year of regular mechanical misfortune.
Rating out of ten: 8

Nico Hulkenberg's presence in Sunday's race was easily missed. The German was a peripheral figure, his half-second deficit to Perez carried over into race day when Hulkenberg crossed the line half a minute behind the lead Force India after 55 laps. Nico ends the year with a Le Mans winner's trophy on the mantelpiece but his F1 career treading water.
Rating out of ten: 5

So how was your race, Felipe Massa? "Boring". And on that note, we'll move swiftly on...
Rating out of ten: 6

There was awe in the voice of Martin Brundle when he remarked "Romain Grosjean is doing a stellar job" mid-race. The description - and tone - was no more than the Lotus driver deserved for another outstanding display. Waylaid by a broken gearbox in qualifying which was compounded by a grid penalty, Grosjean ran ultra-long in the first stint and then capped a fine fightback on the final laps by overtaking Carlos Sainz and Daniil Kvyat to reach the points. The Frenchman has abandoned ship for Haas but his ninth place guaranteed sixth for Lotus in the Constructors' Championship ahead of Toro Rosso, a leaving present worth around £10m in prize money. 
Rating out of ten: 9

Handicapped by an ERS fault on his Red Bull, Daniil Kvyat claimed the final points-paying position in the season finale by just a second over the unfortunate Sainz. "Almost every lap we had to do something about our electronic issues, so under the circumstances, we did absolutely the best job we could today and I'm happy about that," said the young Russian. Tenth was nothing much to write home about perhaps, but the bigger picture outcome is: Kvyat ends the year with three more points than Ricciardo. Luck has played its part, particularly the bad kind which has consistently hurt Ricciardo, but it's a final result which has validated Kvyat's appointment as Vettel's successor twelve months ago.
Rating out of ten: 6

Just out of the points when the chequered flag fell in Abu Dhabi, the consolation from the weekend for Carlos Sainz will be his narrow but decisive victory over Max Verstappen in qualifying, leaving the final score for the year at 10-9 in the Spaniard's favour. "My rookie season ends with a positive feeling because I think we've had a good year and overall I've definitely learned a lot every race, become a better driver and this will make me stronger," reflected Sainz as he signed off for the season. Don't underestimate his talent.
Rating out of ten: 7.5

What a contrast between the two McLaren team-mates. While Fernando Alonso, as detailed below, sought to wave the white flag after a dozen laps, Jenson Button finished up in 12th with "probably my best race of the year" before delivering a rousing pep talk over the team radio on his slow-down lap. His race engineer responded by describing Button's successful defence against the Mercedes-powered Williams as "staggering". Take note: Button is now the only team-mate in Alonso's F1 career to have outscored the Spaniard over a full season. 
Rating out of ten: 9

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Valtteri Bottas' Abu Dhabi GP unravelled the moment he was released from his first pit-stop into the path of Button's McLaren. The result was an unedifying collision with Bottas then circulating for what must have been his slowest lap of the year devoid of a front-wing before, just to add punishment to injury, he was hit with a five-second penalty at his second stop. Add in a general lack of pace and the result was an afternoon to instantly forget.
Rating out of ten: 6

While Ron Dennis has rowed back on his suggestion that Fernando Alonso may skip 2016 by insisting the Spaniard will drive for McLaren next year, the Spaniard's request to have retired from the season finale will do nothing to quell the nagging suspicion that the two-time world champion really might sit on the sidelines next year. "If we don't have a Safety Car I will retire the car," implored Fernando even before reaching halfway distance. All eyes - and all expectations - are on the pre-season test at Barcelona in late February when Alonso's McLaren career will, it seems, make or break.
Rating out of ten: 5

Despite their public stoicism, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr are surely relieved to have reached the 2015 chequered flag and waved goodbye to a Sauber car which has barely been altered since Melbourne. The pair were more or less inseparable on race day, with Ericsson's refusal to yield to his team-mate's surge in the final stages a solid comeback to Nasr's qualifying victory, which left the final score for the year at 10-9 in his favour.
Rating out of ten: 7 each

It's never dull with Max Verstappen. After losing out to Sainz in qualifying, he appeared to boast the superior race-day pace and was released by his team-mate to chase down the Red Bull of Kvyat only to make a horrible mess of his tyres to race-wrecking effect. Twelfth on the road at the finish, the youngster was subsequently hit with a 20-second time penalty for failing to heed the blue flags when being lapped. A cautionary note on which to round off his year: Verstappen has now amassed eight penalty points for the year, leaving him just four away from a ban. He'll need to be on his best behaviour at the start of 2016.
Rating out of ten: 5

They came, they saw, they were lapped - three times in the experience of Roberto Merhi but just twice for Will Stevens as the Englishman completed a race and qualifying double over the Spaniard. Now the wait begins to learn whether either or both of them will be retained in 2016 - when, it must be hoped, Manor will be rather more competitive than they have been this year.
Rating out of ten: Stevens 7; Merhi 5

After suffering the heaviest head-to-head team-mate defeat in qualifying this year, the best that can be said of Pastor Maldonado's first-lap retirement is that it was a suitably undistinguished end to a year best forgotten. In Pastor's defence, he was blameless during his first-corner clash with Alonso - with the McLaren sent spiralling into the Lotus after clipping the Sauber of Nasr. Alonso vented afterwards against the stewards but it was Maldonado who had the greater cause for complaint. Roll on 2016.
Rating out of ten: N/A

Don't miss the F1 Midweek Report for analysis of the Abu Dhabi GP and all the latest F1 news. Former BAR boss David Richards and car designer Gary Anderson join Natalie Pinkham on Sky Sports F1 at 8:30pm on Wednesday.