The $20m fight behind McLaren-Ferrari F1 title showdown

The F1 constructors’ championship duel between McLaren and Ferrari will understandably capture most of the attention during Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

For McLaren, who hold a 21-point advantage and a front-row lockout going into the race, it would be their first constructors’ triumph since 1998, and a first title of any form since 2008. Glory for Ferrari would end a 16-year wait for the teams’ title.

However, slightly further back on the grid, there is another massively important battle for constructors’ championship honours.

That is the tussle to secure P6 in the championship. Alpine currently hold the coveted spot but are just four points clear of Haas.

RB are not mathematically out of contention - 13 points further adrift - but they would need a seemingly unlikely points swing, especially given both their drivers start outside the top-10 and behind their rivals.

As such, the attention is on the Alpine-Haas battle. Pierre Gasly starts fifth for Alpine, with Nico Hulkenberg just two places behind in seventh. The German had turned in a stunning lap on Saturday night to grab P4 on the grid, only to be hit with a three-place penalty.

The grid drop is undoubtedly a blow for Haas given they need to outscore Alpine by five points in order to overhaul the French manufacturer and enjoy the minimum $20 million prize money swing that would come their way if they were successful.

Haas appear to have a faster car than Alpine, and with the other Haas and Alpine drivers starting 14th (Kevin Magnussen) and 17th (Jack Doohan), Sunday’s grand prix has another fascinating storyline to it.

‘A tight and tough battle’

Speaking after Hulkenberg’s penalty was confirmed, Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said: “I’ve got mixed feelings after qualifying. The pace in the car was amazing, and I think both drivers had amazing pace as well.

“Kevin, unfortunately when he was trying to get out of the way of Hamilton, went over the curb and gained significant damage to the car. In Q2, his car was severely damaged aerodynamically, so he had no chance to get into Q3.

“In Q1, Nico overtook cars in front of him in the pitlane which is illegal, so we’ve received a three-place grid penalty. It’s disappointing but his Q3 performance, and overall, showed that the pace is amazing. We’ve got a pretty strong car with strong pace, so we’ll do everything to get as high as possible.”

Hulkenberg is bracing for a “tight and tough battle” with Alpine.

“”Alpine has been strong lately, but we’re all so close together so it really comes down to all the racing moments and strategy,” he said. “It’s important for me personally that we maximise tomorrow and leave nothing out there and have a happy ending to our night.”

Gasly, meanwhile, echoed Hulkenberg’s assessment, saying: “Nico is suddenly in force, which was really impressive. They’ve looked strong all weekend and they clearly had the upper hand on us. I'm very happy to have closed the gap - that was only a tenth in the end, so we're on for a good fight tomorrow.”