Antonelli's worst weekend of 2026 was still an F1 champion's drive
Kimi Antonelli called Baku his worst weekend by far, yet fifth place and a 66-point lead suggest it may have shown him at his best
More fireworks in Abu Dhabi?
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Formula 1 returns to the scene of its most controversial race ever this weekend at Yas Marina.
12 months on from last year’s drivers’ title row, and this season’s crowns have long been wrapped up.
Last week’s thrilling offering in Brazil though suggests Abu Dhabi, not usually a track known for producing exciting races, could turn out something special.
For the first time this year all three top teams – Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari – have relatively converged on pace. Who will win the latest duel in the desert?
See our times below to catch all the action.
All the Abu Dhabi sessions will be shown live, as well as free-to-air highlights of qualifying and the race.
Live TV: Each session will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, beginning with Free Practice 1 at 10am Friday morning.
Live Stream: Sky Sports F1 subscribers can watch all the action as it happens on the Sky Go app, as well as subscribers to Now TV.
Highlights: Channel 4 will show highlights on Saturday and Sunday evening.
All times GMT
| Qualifying, Saturday 19 November | Abu Dhabi GP, Sunday 20 November | |
| Start time | 2pm | 1pm |
| Live coverage | From 1.15pm, Sky Sports F1 | From 11.30am, Sky Sports F1 |
| Highlights | 6.40pm, Channel 4 | 5.30pm, Channel 4 |
Every session will be live on Sky Sports with coverage beforehand, as well as live reaction after.
Friday: FP1 – 9.30am | FP2 – 12.45pm
Saturday: FP3 – 10.15am | Qualifying – 1.15pm
Sunday: Grand Prix – 11.30am
If you’re a Sky subscriber, you can watch all the running live with the Sky Go app on mobile and tablet devices, in addition to laptop, PC and consoles.
You can also live stream the sessions with the NOW TV on a sports membership, which can be used anywhere in the UK. NOW TV can also be downloaded for all devices.
A NOW TV weekend pass can also be purchased, giving you access to all sessions as well as build-up and reaction.
The Abu Dhabi GP is one which is looking, for the first time in a while, wide open.
After a long period of dominance from Red Bull and Max Verstappen, the slowly improving Mercedes team finally came good in Brazil, with George Russell and Lewis Hamilton taking a 1-2 for the Silver Arrows.
The two long straights which provide the main passing opportunities might work against the Mercs, which suffer from drag, but the new lightweight-spec W13 might just have enough pace to overturn this.
The Red Bull has typically been the car to enjoy the high speed blasts, but with plenty of technical sections too, usually favouring Ferrari this year, it’s anyone’s guess who could win in Abu Dhabi.
The Abu Dhabi GP is 58 laps long and run over a distance of 306km (190 miles), on a track with a length of 5.2km (3.2 miles).
It has two DRS detection zones, one from the exit of Turn 4 – to be used on straight following Turn 5 – and the second located just after Turn 7, to be used on the straight immediately proceeding it.
| Friday 18 November | Saturday 19 November | Sunday 20 November | |
| F1 | Free Practice 1 – 10am Free Practice 2 – 2pm |
Free Practice 3 – 10.30am Qualifying – 2pm |
Grand Prix – 1pm |
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