Sebastian Vettel may have wrapped up his fourth successive world title with three races to spare, but there's still plenty at stake for teams and drivers alike as this year's Formula One campaign nears its conclusion.
This weekend's race takes place at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi, yet another of Hermann Tilke's creations. Though it's fair to say that the track layout has hardly inspired the drivers, its spectacular backdrop, eclipsed only by Monaco, and unique status as a 'twilight' Grand Prix lends the place a certain aura absent from the majority of the sport's Eastern venues.
Not only that, Abu Dhabi has thrown up some memorable races in its relatively brief history since it hosted its first Grand Prix back in 2009. Chief among those is that unforgettable evening that saw Vettel clinch his first title - which seems far longer ago than three years - and last year's first post-comeback race win for a certain Kimi Raikkonen.
The circuit itself demands strong top speed, featuring two mammoth straights, and good traction out of the many slow and medium-speed corners the drivers are faced with. Two DRS zones along the aforementioned straights make overtaking straightforward at Abu Dhabi, whilst the medium and soft compound tyres seen at India will be making their return with wear expected to be less of an issue this weekend given the lower temperatures of an evening race.
Sebastian Vettel may now have put the championship out of reach of his rivals, but anybody hoping that this means the German will lift his foot from the throttle pedal will be severely disappointed. The Red Bull driver is an aficionado for statistics, and will match two important records if he's able to win the remaining three races of the year.
The first would be to match his compatriot Michael Schumacher's amazing record of winning 13 Grands Prix in a season. Admittedly, the Ferrari driver had one less race during the 2004 season in which to achieve this, but matching it would nonetheless be symbolic of Vettel's relentless ascendancy in the F1 record books.
The second would be to match a far older record, that of Alberto Ascari's nine successive Grand Prix victories set back in 1953. Vettel currently stands on six wins on the trot, enough to put him joint third in the list alongside the great Jim Clark and one behind Schumacher, who won seven in a row in 2004.
Given how dominant the Red Bull has become in this latter half of the season, you'd have to be brave indeed to bet against Vettel winning the final three races and matching both of the above.
On the evidence of the Indian Grand Prix, the man most likely to stop Vettel is his own teammate Mark Webber, who is still in search of that elusive first victory of the year. Qualifying fourth on prime tyres at India seemed to put Webber in a strong position to challenge for honours, but a poor start compromised his strategy before alternator failure denied him what would have been second place.
Seeing the Australian stand atop an F1 podium one more time before he switches to endurance racing would surely be something nearly every fan would love to see, but you get the feeling Vettel would have to hit some kind of misfortune between now and the chequered flag at Interlagos in order for it to happen.
As for the rest, chasing victory is hardly likely to be on their minds, with the battle for second in the constructors' standings paramount.
Following a strong second place for Nico Rosberg and sixth for Lewis Hamilton at India, Mercedes have surpassed Ferrari and look to have a good chance of consolidating their position this weekend despite the distraction of speculation over team principal Ross Brawn's future. Hamilton tends to go well at Abu Dhabi, having won in 2011 and retiring from the lead in both 2009 and 2012, whilst the character of the circuit ought to suit the Silver Arrows better than most venues.
Ferrari meanwhile are on the back foot after a bruising race for Fernando Alonso at India, Felipe Massa's fourth place preventing them from losing too much ground to Mercedes. Given that the team have not looked like finishing on the podium in the last three races, the Scuderia will need a hefty dose of luck to get them back ahead of their rivals at Brackley this weekend.
Lotus have also had their fair share of the headlines in recent days as the team's relationship with the outgoing Raikkonen deteriorated following events at India, where the Finn was sworn at for not letting faster teammate Romain Grosjean by. Having missed the media day on Thursday, Raikkonen did turn up on Friday to compete in practice, but his presence at the final two Grands Prix is hardly guaranteed.
Grosjean, who topped first practice this morning, will doubtless be eyeing up a fourth straight podium finish after somehow pulling third place out of the bag at India having started way down in 17th (the largest position gain for any driver all year), whilst Raikkonen will be looking to put another disappointing weekend behind him and get himself back on terms with the ascending star that is his teammate.
Sergio Perez did much to silence his critics with a fine drive to fifth at India, and given that McLaren are now comfortable top-ten contenders, the Mexican will be aiming for another decent haul of points to try and secure his drive at the Woking-based team for next year.
Someone else whose future is still undecided is Nico Hulkenberg, who is still without a drive for next year despite the miraculous run of form he has enjoyed since Monza. The latest reports suggest that, with the investment funds from the Quantum Motorsports group not forthcoming, 'Hulk' could be set to lose out to Pastor Maldonado in his bid to bag a Lotus drive.
The rest of the driver market looks to be on hold until Lotus finally reach a decision over who will partner Grosjean next season, with Force India, Sauber and Williams as well as Caterham and Marussia all ostensibly waiting to see who will be available before finalising their respective line-ups.
The latest rumours point towards Max Chilton potentially moving to Force India alongside Adrian Sutil, with Formula Renault 3.5 champion Kevin Magnussen slotting in the Brit's place at Marussia. This would leave Paul Di Resta in the cold, meaning the Scot has to prove to his team that his talent is sufficient to outweigh the lure of Chilton's cash.
Qualifying Prediction
1. Vettel, 2. Hamilton, 3. Webber, 4. Grosjean, 5. Rosberg, 6. Alonso, 7. Raikkonen, 8. Hulkenberg, 9. Massa, 10. Perez
Race Prediction
1. Vettel, 2. Webber, 3. Grosjean, 4. Hamilton, 5. Rosberg, 6. Alonso, 7. Hulkenberg, 8. Perez, 9. Button, 10. Sutil
Another prediction, another Vettel victory - don't give me that look! Webber will be a (not so) close second, with Grosjean making another appearance on the podium and replicating the top three of Suzuka. Hamilton will be in the mix but ultimately unable to fend off the Lotus, Rosberg making it two Mercedes cars in the top five.
Alonso will manage no more than sixth, Ferrari losing further ground in the battle with Mercedes, with Hulkenberg taking the result he ought to have at India before he was sidelined by mechanical failure. Perez will beat teammate Button once more, the ever-dependable Adrian Sutil rounding out the points-scorers in tenth place.
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