The McLaren team continued their crushing form at the Yas Marina track, with Lewis Hamilton romping to pole position by a huge margin. But it wasn't all good news for the team, with Kovalainen suffering reliability issues.

Newly crowned 2009 World Champion Jenson Button's Brawn led home fellow countryman Lewis Hamilton's McLaren in the final practice session of the ultimately meaningless inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. 

Heikki Kovalainen grabbed top spot in the evening practice session in Abu Dhabi with his McLaren, finding a lap right at the end of the session to pip his team mate Lewis Hamilton, while the new champion also figured strongly again.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton secured top spot in the first ever practice session at the new Yas Marina circuit, finishing just ahead of the new world champion Jenson Button, as the usual suspects dominated things at the new track.

Brawn GP's Jenson Button clinched his maiden world drivers championship with a thrilling drive at Interlagos after Rubens Barrichello's challenge fell apart, in a race eventually won by Red Bull's Mark Webber, and packed with drama.

Brawn GP's Rubens Barrichello managed to successfully overcome thunder and lightning, multiple crashes and long delays to take a brilliant home pole as his title rivals endured a nightmarish and forgettable afternoon. 

The Williams - Toyota pairing of Nico Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima scored a rather pointless one-two for the British team in a Saturday practice session that was almost entirely written-off by some very torrential rain in Brazil.

Fernando Alonso overcame Felipe Massa's rant to steal the fastest time of FP2 ahead of an impressive Sebastien Buemi in one of the closest sessions this season. The three title challengers came through the session unscathed as Ferrari and McLaren struggled.