Click to download our PDF: Martin Brundle's guide to the Yas Marina Circuit

Both world championships may already be decided but much remains at stake here for the inaugural Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix. This race is unique in that it will start at dusk and finish in the dark, with circuit lighting switched on from the outset. The billion-dollar facility sends out a strong signal for the health of F1, and Bernie Ecclestone must be delighted with the immense commitment demonstrated here.

On the track, Sebastian Vettel has squeezed two points ahead of Rubens Barrichello in the fight to be runner-up, while McLaren and Ferrari are fighting tooth and nail to recover their seasons, just one point apart going for third place in the constructors’ championship. McLaren are favourites in that particular grudge match.

You’re only as good as your last result in this business, so there is something special about heading into the four-month winter lay-off on a high, particularly this time, given that half the drivers remain unemployed for next year. There will be plenty of desperate action during the race.

There will also be several farewells this evening. BMW are leaving F1 and the future of the team seems uncertain, as the potential buyers have yet to gain an entry on next year’s theoretically overcrowded grid, with four new teams already coming in.

Ferrari-bound Fernando Alonso says goodbye to Renault, and the man he replaces, Kimi Raikkonen, is off to unknown new pastures. Nico Rosberg leaves Williams, and Toyota engines are departing the team too, meaning Kazuki Nakajima will probably follow.

I drove 40 laps of this new Yas Marina circuit two weeks ago and, unsurprisingly, the drivers are very positive about the layout. There are three distinct sections to it. Fortunately, there are no expansive safety run-off areas. The fans are closer, and so are the barriers. Tecpro barriers, a design first used in Monza, are able to absorb much more energy.

The drivers are sceptical, however, because at 200mph there just doesn’t seem to be enough distance and material to slow the car. The controlled rate of deceleration may prevent brain injury but it still looks like it’s going to hurt.

Having said that, cars have been penetrating the more traditional “tyres and protective conveyor belt” set-up too frequently recently.

The first corner is a tight left-hander that releases the cars into the interconnected turns two, three and four — which are very fast. The exit of the pit lane feeds directly into turn three. This leads downhill into a chicane and hairpin approached at 190mph.

Next is the high-speed section, beginning with a three-quarter-mile straight with a strange feature towards the end — it suddenly loses a lane. The drivers are obliged to take a middle line and it will be interesting if they are two or three abreast. A chicane relaunches the cars on to a high-speed left curve before they move into the third phase of the lap, similar to a street circuit. This begins with a slow left-right-left-tight left with a feature that will be repeated three more times in the lap — an adverse camber exit. The track falls away, making the cars slide. In track-design parlance, it is an “error generator” — and I’m sure it will succeed in that.

The following section around the marina is like an American “block change” street-racing circuit, with lots of 90-degree turns linked under a hotel’s pedestrian bridge. The pit-lane exit is interesting. After they’ve passed the speed-limit line, it is maximum attack down a steep decline into a sharp and very slippery left-hander that leads into a tunnel. An accident in the tunnel will close the pits.

Lewis Hamilton has been master of this new layout, cemented by a sensational pole position. It was always about who would join him on the front row, and Red Bull’s Vettel achieved that, just in front of his teammate, Mark Webber.

Brawn GP’s Barrichello and Jenson Button line up fourth and fifth, and seem more confident of their race pace. It was a miserable day for Ferrari, who have lacked pace.

Their former team boss Jean Todt won the FIA presidential election last week over Ari Vatanen. It’s interesting that both parties were emphasising how they are going to run things very differently, confirming change was needed. Todt has a strong record of success but not one of popularity.

Some are nervous that his Ferrari links and other historical issues may sway decisions. After reading his manifesto, I’m confident we will have a more transparent and positively minded FIA. No doubt there will be an event sooner rather than later to test that. It will be interesting to see who he assembles around him. I feel motivated about this regime.