Abu Dhabi - F1 Prediction League (Round 17)

There you go, the title is won but is it all over? We still have the battle for second in the drivers and constructors championship - if you can look past the fact that few will remember who secured 2nd in 30 years time then there is still a lot left to look forward to this season. The battles down the field have been exciting, just a shame that there is such a strong, consistent winner.

Only one player scored any race points in India - with luck befalling all of the main picked drivers, especially Mark Webber. Well done Rajaram, Grosjean performed excellently.

Three races left means the constructors championship can be wrapped up in Abu Dhabi if Sauber outscore Lotus by 17 points. Overall there is still plenty to be play for, with FIA bonuses going to the top five in the Drivers Championship and the top three in the Constructors Championship.

To refresh your memories, here's a quick round-up of the standings so far:

For a full guide to the 2013 season including stats and other F1 prediction league articles, please go to: F1 Prediction League 2013

Also see the Driver speculation 2014 page for constructors offers etc. There are currently offers for Jasper94, MetalGatherer, Michael and Keba. Please don't be afraid to request a team if you're interested or to make specific demands if you feel you're worth it!

Update on Red Bull #2 contract situation:

The driver with the most conditions fulfilled has the first choice on the #2 contract.
 

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Random Category for Abu Dhabi (The Abu Dhabi Desert Difference)

Which teammates will have the closest qualifying and fastest lap times and which teammates will have the furthest apart?

You can only pick one team/two teammates for closest and furthest apart e.g. closest - Force India, furthest apart - Ferrari. Therefore you'll need to consider how to score the maximum points picking one team for both qualifying and fastest lap.

For both qualifying and fastest lap, points will be scored in line with F1 scores (see below): 

Closest teammates:

Qualifying - 25/18/15/12/10/8/6/4/2/1/0

Fastest lap - 25/18/15/12/10/8/6/4/2/1/0

Furthest apart teammates:

Qualifying - 25/18/15/12/10/8/6/4/2/1/0

Fastest lap - 25/18/15/12/10/8/6/4/2/1/0

This means that the teammates who are closest or furthest away based on time alone will score 25 points, 2nd closest/furthest 18 points etc.

The total score across the four different categories will be added together to get an overall score and compared against other players.

The scoring system works as follows:

Best picker: 3 points
2nd and 3rd: 2 points
4th, 5th and 6th: 1 point

Ties will be dealt with on a countback method (most 25 points, most 18 points). If there is no way to distinguish, time of posting will be used.

Note 1: Retired drivers will not be counted in fastest lap (will score you 0 points), therefore it is not beneficial to select a driver who is highly likely to retire and have a huge fastest lap difference to their teammate.

Note 2: if there is an overall tie on weekend points and the usual method of race > constructors > qualifying > random cannot settle the difference, constructors points will be decided on actual random scores (i.e. the total score across all four categories).

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Reminder: No Vettel race picks and no Red Bull constructors picks. Unfortunately Vettel is still allowed as a qualifying pick given the rules set down before Japan - see comments in the India race thread.

Post your picks in the following format -

Qualifying:

Race:
Constructors:
Random:-

Team 1 [Closest]
Team 2 [Furthest apart]

The deadline for Abu Dhabi picks is Friday 1st November 09:00 GMT (before FP1). 

Good luck and may the best picker win! If anyone's worried about block picking, please email me with your picks here. Then I can post your picks during FP1 when possible. Same rules apply as usual, after you've made your picks you'll have a very small window to correct (1 hour) and then they're set in stone.

I'll always attempt to pick fairly early, given my position in the championship always good to avoid any suspicions!