Two-way fight

After the previous round in Las Vegas crowned Max Verstappen as world champion for the fourth consecutive year, the outcome of yesterday's dramatic Qatar Grand Prix ensured that his Red Bull Racing team is no longer in the fight for the Constructors' title, as it will not be able to make up the 59 point gap to leaders McLaren next Sunday in Abu Dhabi. Yet again this year, Verstappen was exceptional, taking nine wins in an impressively consistent season, despite no longer having the best car. It was an astounding feat, possibly the youngster's greatest achievement so far, but it was not enough for his team to secure a sixth championship crown. Sergio Perez's incredibly poor season cost a lot: having picked up 103 points from the first six races, the Mexican only managed a paltry 51 from the next 17. A world champion's team-mate has not finished so far behind since 1994, when Jos Verstappen ended up tenth in the standings, having raced alongside Michael Schumacher for ten races. 
Therefore, at the Yas Marina circuit, for the first time since 2008, the Constructors' title will come down to a duel between the two most successful teams in the history of the sport, McLaren and Scuderia Ferrari. 16 years ago, the final round was the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo and on that day the spoils were divided with Ferrari winning the team title, while Lewis Hamilton got the better of Felipe Massa in an unforgettable Grand Prix to secure the drivers' crown for McLaren. 

Since then, neither of these two teams has won a world championship even if they have been in the fight: in 2010 and 2012 the Italian team took the fight all the way to the final round with Fernando Alonso and in 2010, driving for the English team, Lewis Hamilton arrived in Abu Dhabi still with a slim chance of securing his second title. Therefore, this coming Sunday night, one of them will finally end that drought.  

McLaren, under the leadership of Andrea Stella, who was working for Ferrari as a race engineer to Kimi Raikkonen on that day in 2008 in Interlagos, starts as favourite. That's based not so much on current form, as in the last five rounds it has scored 54 points less than its rival (124 to 178) but mainly because it still has a 21 point lead. This means it can take the title, even if Ferrari finishes first and second and takes the race fastest lap, as long as it picks up at least 23 points in Abu Dhabi. Finishing third and fourth would be sufficient, or even a third and a fifth or a third and sixth. Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur knows a thing or two about winning titles, as in a previous life in charge of the ART Grand Prix team, he picked up a total of 19, between drivers' and teams' in Formula 2, GP2 and GP3, but it would take something special, although it's by no means impossible. The Italian team has the technical armoury and it could also benefit from a strong Red Bull and a resurgent Mercedes, who between the two of them have won the previous three races, to take points away from McLaren.