Ahead of Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Pirelli confirmed they would be remaining as Formula 1's official tyre supplier until 2023.

The Italian company had faced competition from Hankook for the new tender but with big changes expected in 2021, it was also expected Pirelli would get the nod.

"We are delighted to have reached this agreement, which guarantees a long-term stable future for such a crucial component of F1," said CEO Chase Carey.

Pirelli has come in for criticism during their time in the sport, which began in 2011, particularly over the durability of their compounds with drivers having to race conservatively on the fragile rubber.

Efforts continue to try and strike the balance between offering strategic variables through degradation while also allowing drivers to push harder and this week the teams will test their 2019 compounds in Abu Dhabi.

Much of the attention will be on 2021 when F1 will overhaul the tyre regulations with 18-inch rims, which Pirelli first touted in 2014, and possibly do away with blankets to pre-heat before going out on track.

"It’s excellent news that Pirelli is prolonging its partnership with Formula 1 until 2023," Vice President and CEO Marco Tronchetti Provera stated.

"This new agreement extends our presence to a total of 13 seasons in the modern era, with Pirelli also present in 1950, when the world championship was inaugurated.

"F1 is and will remain the pinnacle of motorised competition: the perfect environment for Pirelli, which has always defined motorsport as its most advanced technological research and development laboratory.

"F1 provides the perfect showcase for our Ultra High-Performance road car tyres, which equip the world’s most desirable prestige and premium vehicles to guarantee the highest standards of performance, sustainability and safety."

Lewis Hamilton says his performance at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was about setting the tone for how he plans to start the 2019 season.

The Briton took a comfortable victory at Yas Marina as he benefitted from pitting under an early Virtual Safety Car to gain around 10 seconds in time compared to those behind him when they stopped later.

“I wanted to end the season strong, and on a personal level, I was able to do that and the team have done an exceptional job," he told Sky Sports.

“I wanted to end the way that I plan to start next year. It was a strong weekend that I was really happy with."

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After another highly successful season which saw Hamilton take 11 wins and 11 poles en route to his fifth world title, the Mercedes driver admits his focus has been solely on 2018.

“I’ve not really thought a lot about next year,” Lewis claimed.

“There are days, just being human, you can wish days by but then I don’t want to wish the time away because it goes really quick."

In reflection too, the 33-year-old had a similar view.

“I don’t think it’s been a year particularly of one thing that’s been learned," he said. I’ve understood myself better as I’ve gone on.

“As you make mistakes, you learn from them. I’ve been able to be a better me all year long, and I’m never going to stop trying to do that. I’ve loved every minute of driving today.

“Apart from the tyres not being that good, I’ve really enjoyed driving the car.”

Stoffel Vandoorne has suggested "politics" inside McLaren were partly responsible for his disappointing second season.

The Belgian arrived in Formula 1 in 2017 with great expectations based on his record in junior categories, but up against a double world champion in Fernando Alonso, he struggled to make his mark.

This year, Vandoorne failed to beat the Spaniard at all in qualifying and only scored 12 points compared to his teammate's 50.

While a poor car for much of the year didn't help, the 26-year-old hinted at other reasons for his poor performance.

“You have not seen everything that went on behind the scenes, all the politics,” he told Belgium's La Derniere Heure. “I cannot say everything, but you can imagine some of the things.

“Personally I have no regrets, I did my job as best as I could. What I missed the most in some moments was feeling confidence from the team.

“It’s not always easy to perform and give the best of yourself when you know that they are negotiating with other drivers at the same time, but I did not give up and I ended my season with some good races”

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There were a few flashes of the potential Vandoorne undoubtedly has, including a strong race in Hungary before retiring with gearbox failure and in Abu Dhabi, he had a good fight with Esteban Ocon and Romain Grosjean.

Now a seat with HWA in Formula E awaits starting next month and Stoffel will remain a simulator driver with Mercedes next season.

Asked about his future prospects of returning to F1 though, he said: “I don’t know, but life sometimes surprises you. Maybe one day we’ll meet here again.”

Daniel Ricciardo admitted a little disappointment after failing to score a final Red Bull podium in Abu Dhabi, coming home in fourth.

The Australian looked in good shape initially running third after Kimi Raikkonen retired with issues but staying out longer than those around him left him too much to do in the final 20 laps, finishing just two seconds behind teammate Max Verstappen.

“I’m alright,” Ricciardo said post-race. “It wasn’t the most exciting race, just a little bit it was fun.

“It [the strategy] put me out of reach with the leaders I don’t know if we had much of a choice, we could’ve pitted early and kept track position but it’s always hard to know, I think.

“Lewis pitted early and I didn’t think it would go to the end.

“Our pace advantage was strong at first but we probably just weren’t quick enough."

It was the third straight near-miss on the top three after retiring from second in Mexico, finishing within a second of Kimi Raikkonen in Brazil and now another P4 at Yas Marina.

With his driving days with Red Bull now over, Ricciardo is looking forward to the final goodbyes and moving on by returning back Down Under.

“Thanks to Red Bull and the whole Red Bull family. I would’ve loved to drink out of my shoe but…maybe later," he said.

“I’ll close everything off with Red Bull family with a few days in the factory and then start to initially get to know people at Renault. Then go home and switch off for a bit.

“It’s been a long season so I’m looking forward to going home and to talking to cows and the sheep for a bit where they talk sense.”

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Kimi Raikkonen conceded he'll always have the memories of his combined eight seasons with Ferrari even if his final race in Abu Dhabi ended in retirement.

The Finn was the victim of mechanical problems in an eventful first 10 laps, coming to a halt on the main straight and would explain what happened once back in the paddock.

“Unfortunately we had an electrical issue; in the back straight, I felt I was lacking power and then everything shut down," Kimi said.

“Obviously I’m a bit disappointed. It’s not the way we wanted this last race together to finish. We wanted to do well and I think we would have had a pretty good car for the job.

“It’s a pity but that’s how racing goes sometimes.”

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Even so, the 39-year-old looked back on a solid 2018 season which saw him claim pole at Monza and his first victory in five years in Austin, meaning he leaves the Scuderia as the most recent champion, polesitter and race winner.

“It’s been a pretty decent season, but the four retirements were not in our plans and obviously did not help; we wanted more for sure,” he reflected.

“I want to thank all the Ferrari fans who always gave me a lot of support. We went through good and bad times together, and this makes it all the more interesting.

“Of course we wanted a better finish, but that’s part of the sport.

“We will always have the memories of winning the Drivers’ Championship and two Constructors Championship together,” Raikkonen concluded.

Now the Iceman can look forward to two years with Sauber starting from 2019 while Charles Leclerc takes his Ferrari seat next season.

Fernando Alonso admits the amount of fanfare and tributes he's received in Abu Dhabi has been a surprise as he ends his 17-year Formula 1 career.

The Spaniard raced with a special livery on his McLaren car, had the drivers briefing room decorated in his honour, was awarded 'driver of the day' and completed donuts with Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel as part of the celebration.

Speaking on Sunday though, the double world champion, while thankful, conceded it was all a bit much.

"I was very surprised because I have raced with great champions," he told Sky Sports.

"I raced with Michael [Schumacher], raced with Jenson Button. Two or three years ago in the same place, it was his last race and no one had all the things that I have received this weekend, so I cannot say thanks enough to everyone."

Sadly, the result wasn't the points he was "dreaming" of post-qualifying as he finished 11th, even picking up two penalties as he rather mischievously tried to close on Kevin Magnussen in the final laps.

The biggest question going forward is whether Abu Dhabi was a goodbye for now or a fond farewell with mixed signals on whether Alonso plans to return.

"Right now I'm not thinking to come back, that's for sure," he said. "But I don't know how I'll feel next year. I think I need the break now, 2019 I need different challenges.

"I want to fight for the Triple Crown, the Indy 500 and other iconic races - maybe Daytona, maybe other things that will come," he added.

"But for 2020, maybe I'll feel the need to do a full calendar in something: maybe IndyCar, maybe F1, I don't know. Maybe that's the time to come back or maybe I'll enjoy so much next year that I won't come back."

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The 37-year-old looked back with happiness, however, on what he has achieved.

“Well it is going to be a good memory, you know,” he admitted. “The whole package of Formula 1 was a fantastic journey from a very young age to now.

“Fighting always in any circumstances, in any car, and I think, achieving a lot of success that I never expected.

“I came from a country with no tradition, you know, my father was not a racing driver so it was all by surprise and it was all welcome.

“So happy for that, happy to keep even the last weekend very emotional, with all the things F1 prepared for me and also my team.”

Valtteri Bottas admits he'll need some time away from the Formula 1 track before he can properly look back on a miserable 2018 season.

The Finn suffered another difficult race in Abu Dhabi as a mistake at Turn 5 allowed Sebastian Vettel to pass and then Max Verstappen muscled his way through at Turn 13 with the slight contact forcing him to pit for a second time.

A lowly fifth place finish would be the end result confirming Bottas as the only top-six driver not to win this season and the first Mercedes driver to go a year without a win since 2012.

“I think that race sums up my season pretty well,” Valtteri said post-race at Yas Marina.

“I had a lock-up into Turn 5 and in Turn 8 when Max got close. I don’t know why, the team said they could see some issue but I don’t know what and then I touched with Max and there was a slow puncture and in the end… that was it really."

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Overall it was a season dominated by bad luck initially which then left Bottas playing the 'wingman' to teammate Lewis Hamilton with a puncture in the final laps in Baku while leading and then giving up victory in Sochi the two notable near-misses.

“Honestly you’re asking that too early after the end of the year," he replied when asked to summarise his 2018

“I want to have some time off and time to think about things. It’s been a mentally tough year so I need some break.”

As for how Bottas intends to put it right next year, he added: “For sure it has been on my mind but after this kind of season I don’t have the energy to look too far away.

“I’m just going to take it easy for a while and then I start to look forward. For now, it’s just difficult to see the positives but I will.”

Max Verstappen had few complaints after making his way upto third having sat 10th at one stage during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

As the only top-six runner on the Hypersoft tyre, the Dutchman was expected to be a car to watch in the early laps. He would be, but only for making moves on the two Force India's as a bad start saw him slip down the order.

“It was not an easy race,” Verstappen admitted. “I had a problem off the start, actually the launch was good but then my engine went into like a safety program and I had it again in the restart afterwards.”

Once in clear air Max would have great pace, however, bringing him back into contention and after jumping teammate Daniel Ricciardo in the pit-stops before passing Valtteri Bottas in a bold move, his path to an 11th podium was clear.

“It was not easy but we managed to go back into a good position and put a bit of pressure on the guys ahead,” he continued.

“I think that we stopped quite early but I had to because I was on the Hypers, then we managed to keep the Supersoft alive and I had a good pace but the last few laps were not easy."

The difficulty near the end came from an unexpected source as, for the second race running, Verstappen had a moment with a backmarker.

“There was a Toro Rosso leaking oil onto my helmet so I couldn’t really see where I was going but in the end, I was really happy with third,” he concluded, with that Toro Rosso being his future teammate Pierre Gasly who stopped with engine issues.

After Kimi Raikkonen's early retirement, Max's third place saw him fall just two points shy of third in the Drivers' Championship though he would jump Bottas for fourth.

Nico Hulkenberg confirmed he had no repercussions from his first-lap barrel roll at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The German was battling with Romain Grosjean's Haas into the Turn 8/9 chicane and would make wheel-on-wheel contact pitching his Renault into the air and finishing upside down against the barrier.

Though there was a brief scare with fire, Hulkenberg played down the scary incident.

“Yeah, all fine,” he assured in the paddock. “Just the normal disappointment that you have when you are out on Lap 1 of the race.

“It is obviously not what I was looking for, there is such a long build-up and everybody is putting in the hard work over the weekend and then to be out on Lap 1 like this, and with a lot of damage to the car as well, it just feels bad.”

A scary start to the final race of the season for @HulkHulkenberg ?

He walked away unscathed from his big collision with Romain Grosjean#AbuDhabiGP ?? #F1 pic.twitter.com/bAVm0LRgtQ

— Formula 1 (@F1) November 25, 2018

The stewards soon investigated before ruling it a racing incident and Hulkenberg agreed with the assessment.

“Very disappointing but yeah, I think we have to put it down as a racing incident,” he explained.

“[I was] racing Romain into Turn 8. We both locked up and I went really wide. He went even wider so I thought he ran off the track and I had Turn 9 to myself. That is why I took the apex.

“But obviously he was still there and our wheels made contact and the rest we have seen. A couple of flips which look spectacular but nothing really dramatic.”

It's the first time a driver has faced the situation of trying to escape a car while upside down with the Halo in place and concerns over the length of time it required were justified as his car had to be put back on its wheels first before Hulkenberg could climb out.

“I don’t know really as to whether the Halo blocked me [getting out] or not,” he admitted. “To the right, I had the barrier anyway and then there was a very small gap.

“When you are upside down it is not so easy to find all the buttons and all the things because everything feels very different.

“It was also the first time in the car to end up on the roof. I was just sitting tight, waiting for the marshals, and they reacted very quickly and obviously got me out.”

Sebastian Vettel has promised he and Ferrari will do all they can to beat Lewis Hamilton in 2019, after following the Briton home to second in Abu Dhabi.

The German had a quiet race at Yas Marina with a move on Valtteri Bottas for his P2 finish the only moment of note, race winner Hamilton was also out of reach having benefitted from an early pit-stop under a Virtual Safety Car.

Having completed some donuts for the fans on the cool-down lap, this season's title contenders spoke with David Coulthard with Vettel praising the Mercedes driver.

“Lewis is the champion and he deserves to be the champion,” he said.

“It has been a tough year. I tried everything to the last lap, catching little by little but he controlled the pace at the front. I would have liked it to be a bit more wheel-to-wheel."

Looking forward to next season, Sebastian added: “A long year, a lot of races.

“I will try, we will try, the whole team, to come back stronger and give him a harder run into next year.”

Joining the top two on the grid post-race was Fernando Alonso as the Spaniard bowed out of Formula 1 after 17 years.

“Well done to Fernando, these last years have been very tough for him, we have missed him and we will be missing him," Vettel commented.

“Well done on his career.”