Summary

  • Rosberg on pole, Hamilton 2nd, Raikkonen 3rd

  • Perez 4th, Ricciardo 5th, Bottas 6th

  • Hamilton top in Q1 & Q2

  • Vettel out in first session with Alonso

  • Button, Verstappen & Lotuses out in Q2

  • Manors and Ericsson out in Q1

  • Get involved: your #starsoftheseason

Live Reporting

Gary Rose

  1. Hmm. Lewis Hamilton has been faster through the first sector, what's he got in the final two parts of the lap? Needs to be big.

  2. A mega lap from Sergio Perez, getting within half a second of Mercedes. Force India are having a great weekend so far. 

    Drivers are heading now for their final attempt to grab a good position on the grid.

  5. David Coulthard
    BBC F1 co-commentator

    This is a real chance for Raikkonen to finish the season on a high, without real pressure from his team-mate.

  6. Rosbergbbc

    Everyone is back into the pits after that flurry of laps. Here's how the order looks:

    1) Rosberg 2) Hamilton 3) Perez 4) Raikkonen 5) Ricciardo 6) Bottas 7) Williams 8) Hulkenberg 9) Kvyat

    Only Carlos Sainz left to complete a timed lap.

  7. First blood to Nico Rosberg. Smooth sailing round the circuit sees him straight into P1 with 1:40.738, 0.2s faster than Lewis Hamilton. Game on.

  8. Lewis Hamilton goes faster, but not by much, it is 1:41.016 for the world champion. Here comes Nico Rosberg, what can he do?

  9. Force India have been going well in Abu Dhabi, and it is a strong start to the session by Sergio Perez, a 1:41.184 to set the pace.

  10. Busy, busy, busy. 

    Everyone bar Carlos Sainz is straight out onto the circuit, which is now fully lit up by the floodlights. Dusk has given way to darkness.

  11. Final qualifying starts

    Right then, back to the matter at hand. The shootout for the top 10 is under way. Here we go.

  12. alonsobbc

    When Ron [Dennis] says something it is an opportunity to ask him to clarify his quotes. I don’t know what he means or his intention. We will improve, let’s go to winter testing.

    Fernando Alonso

  13. Mark webber

    Mark Webber, speaking about Fernando Alonso and his future: "He is a time bomb. He is ticking over, the whole season has been very frustrating for him. Obviously the way Ron [Dennis] and Fernando left the relationship in the past we are maybe seeing some of this, the tension is building.

    "I think he will have two or three days in testing and make a decision then, he could have a year off. If things are not going his way he will create pressure on all parts of the team. He hates losing."

  14. IN

    1) Hamilton 2) Rosberg 3) Perez 4) Raikkonen 5) Ricciardo 6) Bottas 7) Hulkenberg 8) Kvyat 9) Massa 10) Sainz

  15. OUT

    11) Verstappen 12) Button 13) Maldonado 14) Nasr 15) Grosjean

  16. Second qualifying ends

    Lewis Hamilton finishes fastest in the second part of qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

  17. Any last minute heroics from Jenson Button? Not this time, he's out but Carlos Sainz has pulled a good lap out of the bag and he is safe, dropping his team-mate Max Verstappen into the elimination zone.

  18. In the dropzone at the moment are Carlos Sainz, Jenson Button, Pastor Maldonado and Felipe Nasr.

    No time set for Romain Grosjean, he's had gearbox problems but Lotus try to get him back out for one last crack at a lap. No good, the gearbox is done and he's pulled over on the backstraight. 

    A disappointing final qualifying session for him at Lotus.

  19. Ben Edwards
    BBC F1 commentator

    Third place for Kimi Raikkonen just eight tenths of a second behind Hamilton. That is exactly what we thought Ferrari should deliver, just a pity that there is only one of them now.

  20. Alonso on chances of a 2016 sabbatical

    Jennie Gow
    BBC Radio 5 live pit-lane reporter

    McLaren's Fernando Alonso has responded to the sabbatical comments made by team boss Ron Dennis earlier with this response to 5 live's Jennie Gow. "It's not really for me to say - it's up to Ron to have his opinions, I can't really comment."