Five things to look out for in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

It's the final race of the 2019 F1 season and while the world championship battles might be wrapped up, there's still plenty to look out for in both the drivers' and constructors' standings. Meanwhile at the front, who will pick up that all-important winter break momentum? And how will Nico Hulkenberg and Robert Kubica perform as the sport waves farewell? 

1. Can Toro Rosso leapfrog Renault? 

What a disaster it would be for Renault to finish sixth in the F1 world championship. Last year, the French team finish fourth and have already dropped to fifth with McLaren's sudden improvement. A further drop would represent a significant drop in prize money, something not ideal at the best of times but even worse with a new boss reviewing the spending in the whole Renault organisation. Toro Rosso, who will be named Alpha Tauri in 2020, need to outscore Daniel Ricciardo and Hulkenberg by nine points. A tough ask giving the starting grid. 

| Starting Grid: 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix#F1 #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/tYUHHEISI7

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2. Who will finish sixth in the drivers' championship?

A proper battle is going on for sixth place in the world championship. Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz are currently level on points with Alex Albon 11 points behind. Sainz starts the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix three places behind his Aston Martin Red Bull Racing rival while Gasly starts a further three places behind that. Albon will need to finish higher than fourth to beat Sainz and Gasly. 

3. Winter break momentum 

We saw how important this was in 2015 when Hamilton shut down in the final three races giving Nico Rosberg much needed momentum for his 2016 title push. Hamilton, given his pole position for this race, hasn't backed off this year. He'll be fighting Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Valtteri Bottas for momentum. You can't rule out Sebastian Vettel either. 

4. Changing track conditions 

As always, the day-to-night aspect of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix provides the teams and strategiest with something different. In qualifying, the track temperature dropped by 4c as the sunset. With the race lasting a bit longer, it's likely this drops even further. 

5. A Formula 1 farewell to Nico Hulkenberg and Robert Kubica

It won't be like Fernando Alonso last year, but it's still worth pointing out. Both Hulkenberg and Kubica have a high level of talent and nobody got to see the best of either one.