The curtain closes down on the 2014 season here in Abu Dhabi in the way that pretty much everybody expected to be.
The few hopes for a thrilling race, kept alive by an outstanding pole position performance from the German Nico Rosberg on Saturday, faded away at the first corner of the race.
No one could have taken away this Championship from Lewis Hamilton's pocket, no driver, no team, no "double points in the final race" rule.
The combination Hamilton-Mercedes this year was just simply the best. The car that translated into racing performance the big technical changes introduced this year better than anyone else. The driver that improved the most since last year.
It has been an astonishing season for the British driver that today sits on top of the racing world. The inconsistency and the temper that produced much trouble for him in the past seasons seems well back in the past. Today's Lewis is a solid, concentrated, calculating driver that fits well in the team mechanisms, even when he has to share the box with his direct competitor for the title. He comes out as a much more humble and personable character, definitely much more diplomatic when needed and his maturity translate in more confidence and more coolness behind the wheel.
It's the evolution that impresses more than the result. Being F1 Champion again, for the second time, it's definitely an achievement but it's probably even better knowing that the driver is fully developed and at his best. Mercedes fully gets it and they will put all the effort needed to keep the gap from the other teams, to make this the first of a long strike of successes.
On the other hand, Rosberg proved to be a very respectable individual. Inside the car he showed an incredible consistency that only cracked a couple times when the pressure for results was getting heavier. The determination the pushed him to never give up is remarkable and it's all summarized in his willing to finish this Sunday Gran Prix under the checkered flag even though it was clear that the title slipped away form him way back in the race and the team suggested an anticipated retirement.
He finishes this season with his head up, showing pride, respect for the opponent and knowledge that this year there was really nothing more to do.
The frictions and tensions showed sometimes on track and in the paddock between the two drivers proved to be part of the competition that we often experienced in the past and that contributed to build up legendary sort of halos around some of the best drivers ever. If we kept watching race after race, lap after lap, it's because these two gave everything they had and the team took the only role of supervising them without giving orders that could have killed the show.
Much more can be said about this season, and it will be, but there is one particular little good news that is good to share today. Jules Bianchi, still in the fight for his life after the horrible accident of Suzuka, was able to be moved back to France, in a medical facility closer to his place, to his family and to his friends and fans. The road for him is still long and steep but hopefully the comfort of being back home will play in his favor.
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