Theo Pourchaire sealed the Formula 2 title in the season-closing feature race which was won by Jack Doohan at Yas Marina.
Virtuosi driver Doohan finished almost four seconds clear of fellow Alpine junior Victor Martins to take his third victory of the year, while Martins’ ART GP team-mate Pourchaire recovered from 14th on the grid to fifth.
Prema’s Frederik Vesti prevailed in a late battle with chief title rival Pourchaire and escaped damage in a final-lap collision with Rodin Carlin’s Zane Maloney to finish third, but it was not enough for the Mercedes junior to steal the crown.
Doohan converted pole into the lead at the start while Campos Racing’s Kush Maini took second away from Martins, who held off Ayumu Iwasa for third into turn one.
Iwasa was involved in a three-way scrap with fellow Red Bull juniors Isack Hadjar and Zane Maloney on the opening lap, but managed to retain fourth despite a brief excursion off the track.
Pourchaire made up three places to 11th behind Ollie Bearman, whose Prema team-mate Frederik Vesti prevailed in a first-lap battle with Richard Verschoor to climb one spot to eighth.
Doohan pulled out an early 2.5-second lead over Maini before making his mandatory pitstop at the end of lap nine of 23 to switch from soft to medium compound tyres, with many of the leading runners having previously done the same.
That left Martins with a six-second lead over Vesti, the pair having started the race on medium tyres. Vesti closed the gap to 4s over the next few laps before pitting at the end of lap 22, with Martins coming in next time by and rejoining 6s behind leader Doohan.
Vesti emerged from his stop just behind the medium-shod Pourchaire. Using the superior grip of his soft tyres, Vesti tried a late lunge into turn six on both his main rival and Kush Maini, who ran off track but remained ahead. Pourchaire came out on top in a wheel-to-wheel battle with Vesti on the next straight, and the pair both fought past Maini before the end of the lap.
The title-contending duo continued their squabble over the next two laps before Vesti used his DRS to sweep by into fifth. He soon passed Iwasa for fourth and went on a late charge to catch Maloney on the final lap. Vesti tried a move around the outside at turn six but the pair collided, with Maloney spinning down the order.
Doohan cruised to victory ahead of Martins, who reduced the deficit by 2s in the closing stages, with Vesti limping home third.
Iwasa finished fourth, with his DAMS team-mate Arthur Leclerc coming home sixth behind Pourchaire. Hauger and Hadjar finished close behind in seventh and eight, with Maini and Jak Crawford completing the top 10.
Bearman faded with engine issues and eventually retired, with Josh Mason, Verschoor and Franco Colapinto also non-finishers.
Featured image credit: Formula Motorsport Ltd
