Concierge UAE November-December 2020

Page 40

Chasing greatness ——

The 2020 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has taken on extra significance for Lewis Hamilton as the reigning world champion attempts to match Michael Schumacher’s record as the only driver in history to win seven Formula 1 World Championships

When it was announced in early 2007 that Abu Dhabi had won the rights to host a Grand Prix, few would have predicted that the race would take on such significance or that a Formula 1 rookie would go on to dominate the sport for the next decade. At that time, Lewis Hamilton was taking his first tentative steps in the world of motor racing. Yet, just two years after the very first Grand Prix to be held in Abu Dhabi, the British driver stormed to victory in the final race of the 2011 season, eclipsing German driver Sebastian Vettel, who scored two consecutive wins in the first two editions of the race. This was Hamilton’s second Formula 1 win, with the Briton claiming his first victory in his debut season at the Canadian Grand Prix held in 2007 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec. An astonishing effort from the then 27-year-old, his achievement on Yas Island was a sign of things to come as Hamilton went on to secure four additional wins from 2014 onwards. After winning the 2019 season in Abu Dhabi, he is now the reigning world champion and he’s all set to return to the

Yas Marina Circuit

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