Sunday’s race may have been a boring affair on the track but the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix paddock was certainly not.
Yas Marina Circuit was buzzing with activity as celebrities flocked to the venue for the final F1 race of the season.
British chef and TV personality Gordon Ramsay was spotted in the Mercedes hospitality villa while UAE and Al Ain star footballer Omar Abdulrahman was seen strolling down the paddock.
Mumford & Sons, who performed the night before at du Arena, hung out at the Red Bull Racing garage, while Liverpool legend Sami Hyypia was a guest of Mercedes.
Be it the brilliant air performance from the Aermacchi MB-339 jets of UAE’s Al-Fursan display team, or the spectacular fireworks that following the race, Sunday was a day to remember on Yas Island.
A new era: For F1.
Meanwhile in the press conference room, the drivers seemed unanimous in how they felt about the new F1 logo that was unveiled Sunday night.
When the race’s top-three — Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel — were asked about their thoughts on the logo change, the following exchange unfolded.
VB: I kind of like the old one. I only saw it very quickly.
SV: Just say you don’t like the new one!
VB: What’s wrong with the old one? I don’t know. I think it’s quite cool.
SV: I liked the old one better.
LH: The problem is logos… I think the one that we already had was an iconic logo I think. Just imagine Ferrari changing their logo, or Mercedes changed their logo. I don’t think the new one is as iconic but maybe it will grow on us.
Later at the Mercedes hospitality area, team boss Toto Wolff gave one word when asked about how he felt about it.
“Mind-blowing,” the German said sarcastically.
The was more comedy in the post-race press conference when Hamilton suddenly put his hand on Bottas while the Finn was answering a question.
Bottas actually thought he was saying something wrong until Hamilton clarified: “Sorry, there’s a fly on you.”
Well at least that was cleared up.