When Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton crossed the finish line at Yas Marina Circuit on Sunday to seal a dominant Mercedes one-two, fireworks shot out from above the stands to draw the curtain on another F1 season.
It was another remarkable campaign for Hamilton as the 32-year-old sealed a fourth drivers’ title, finishing in front of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel by a comfortable 46 points.
It was not the competitive season we were all hoping for but Ferrari did put up somewhat of a fight to challenge Mercedes, and Vettel walked away with five race wins in 2017.
The two Red Bulls – Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen – combined for three grands prix triumphs.
Here, we look back at the year that was with driver of the year, team of the year and rookie of the year awards up for grabs.
DRIVER OF THE SEASON
The Briton won nine races – more than any other driver this season – en route to sealing a fourth world title and drawing level with Vettel (four world crowns) in the process.
He looked virtually untouchable at Silverstone, Monza and Austin – and capitalised effectively on Vettel’s retirements in Singapore, Malaysia and Japan.
The 32-year-old was a different class and it will be difficult to see him beaten in 2018 as he eyes Juan Manuel Fangio’s haul of five world titles.
TEAM OF THE SEASON
No surprises to see the Silver Arrow secure a fourth successive constructors’ championship with Hamilton and team-mate Valtteri Bottas on the podium 13 times each.
Ferrari will be expected to make further improvements during the off-season, but will it be enough to close the strong gap in the championship?
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT
He may have finished fourth in the drivers’ standings, but the Ferrari driver has failed to win since the Australian Grand Prix in 2013.
If it wasn’t for the reliability issues of Max Verstappen and the recent retirements of Daniel Ricciardo, the Finn could well be lower in the standings.
For a driver on the fifth highest salary, the 38-year-old does not justify his position as an elite driver with the second best team in the sport. Could 2018 be the Ice Man’s final F1 season?
RACE OF THE SEASON
The F1 season blew into life in Baku in June as Vettel swung into Hamilton after wrongly thinking his rival brake-tested him.
The German was hit with a stop-and-go penalty, handing Hamilton the advantage to take the honours. However, the Britons headrest came loose later in the race and he was forced to pit for repairs allowing Vettel to finish ahead of him.
Away from this incident there was plenty of drama, with the Finnish duo of Bottas and Raikkonen clipping each other, while Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez collided – not for the first time this season either.
ROOKIE OF THE SEASON
Few rookies have enjoyed such a consistent start to their F1 careers as the Frenchman finished eighth in the drivers’ standings and scored points in every race except two this season.
The 21-year-old has accumulated 87 points in the driver’s standings, just 13 points behind his experienced Force India team-mate Sergio Perez in seventh position.
DRIVER TO WATCH IN 2018
The flying Dutchman endured a mixed campaign, with seven retirements in 14 races, but managed to clinch points in every race that he completed.
His standout performances included wins in Malaysia and Mexico, as well as podiums in China and Japan.
A bold statement to make, but except the 20-year-old to challenge Hamilton and Vettel for the title in 2018.
TEAM TO WATCH IN 2018
With Daniel Ricciardo collecting nine podiums and Verstappen closing out the season in flawless fashion, Christian Horner’s men should challenge Ferrari for second place in the constructors’ championship next season.