The F1 champ is crowned on NBCSN from Abu Dhabi this weekend - MotorSportsTalk

The 2014 Formula One Drivers’ Championship will be decided this Sunday at 8 a.m. ET on NBCSN, as Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg battle to see who will win the F1 title at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Race coverage begins with a special 60-minute edition of F1 Countdown, NBCSN’s F1 pre-race show, Sunday at 7 a.m. ET on NBCSN.

NBC Sports Live Extra – NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets – will provide streaming coverage of all practices, qualifying, and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Hamilton currently leads Rosberg by 17 points heading into this Sunday’s season finale, following Rosberg’s victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Nov. 9 to narrow his deficit in the standings. The two Mercedes drivers have jockeyed back and forth at the top of the F1 Drivers’ Championship standings all season long, combining to win 15 of 18 races.

This Sunday’s race at Abu Dhabi is worth double points, allowing Rosberg a chance of coming from behind to win his first career F1 title. Hamilton looks to win his second career title after taking the championship in 2008 with McLaren.

Hamilton will win the championship by finishing ahead of Rosberg. There are also a number of scenarios in which he can win if he finishes behind Rosberg (see chart below).

In order for Rosberg to win the title, he must finish ahead of Hamilton by multiple positions in all scenarios.

Following is a chart outlining the champion based on a number of scenarios:

2014 F1 TITLE POSSIBILITIES
If Rosberg Finishes …	And Hamilton Finishes …	The Champion Is…
Behind Hamilton	Ahead of Rosberg	Hamilton
In 1st Place	2nd Place	Hamilton
In 1st Place	In 3rd Place or Worse	Rosberg
In 2nd Place	In 6th Place or Worse	Rosberg
In 3rd Place	In 7th Place or Worse	Rosberg
In 4th Place	In 9th Place or Worse	Rosberg
In 5th Place	In 10th Place or Worse	Rosberg
In 6th Place or Worse	N/A	Hamilton

2014 F1 DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP OVERALL STANDINGS
Pos.	Driver	Team	Points	Wins
1	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	334	10
2	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	317	5
3	Daniel Ricciardo*	Red Bull Racing-Renault	214	3
4	Sebastian Vettel*	Red Bull Racing-Renault	159	0
5	Fernando Alonso*	Ferrari	157	0

*Eliminated from championship contention

Coverage begins tomorrow at 4 a.m. ET with Practice 1 exclusively on NBC Sports Live Extra, followed by Practice 2 at 8 a.m. ETon NBCSN. Live Extra will provide exclusive live coverage of Practice 3 on Saturday at 5 a.m. ET, and NBCSN will present live qualifying at 8 a.m. ET on Saturday.

NBCSN’s coverage of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix begins Sunday at 7 a.m. ET with F1 Countdown, followed by the race at 8 a.m. ET. NBCSN will also present complete post-race coverage on F1 Extra at 10 a.m. ET, and air an encore presentation of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at 2 p.m. ET.

Lead F1 announcer Leigh Diffey will call the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and will be joined by veteran analyst and former race car driver David Hobbs, and analyst and former race mechanic for the Benetton F1 team Steve Matchett. F1 insider Will Buxton will serve as the team’s on-site reporter from Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

Motorsports Coverage This Week on NBCSN & NBC Sports Live Extra (subject to change):

Date	Program	Time (ET)	Network
Thurs., November 20	NASCAR AMERICA	5 p.m.	NBCSN
	Road To Ferrari (Encore)	7 p.m.	NBCSN
	Road To Mercedes (Encore)	8 p.m.	NBCSN
	Off The Grid: Budapest	9 p.m.	NBCSN
	Off The Grid: Singapore	9:30 p.m.	NBCSN
Fri., November 21	Speed Energy Formula Off-Road Series	12:30 a.m.	NBCSN
	Global RallyCross Las Vegas (Encore)	1:30 a.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 1	4 a.m.	NBC Sports Live Extra
	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 2	8 a.m.	NBCSN
Sat., November 22	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Practice 3	5 a.m.	NBC Sports Live Extra
	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying	8 a.m.	NBCSN
Sun., November 23	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying (Encore)	1 a.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Countdown	7 a.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	8 a.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Extra	10 a.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Encore)	2 p.m.	NBCSN
	F1 Extra (Encore)	4:30 p.m.	NBCSN

Follow @TonyDiZinno

The Extreme E team formed by Andretti Autosport and United Autosports named Catie Munnings and Timmy Hansen as its drivers Monday for the series’ inaugural 2021 season.

Munnings is a successful veteran of rally series. Hansen is a past winner and champion in the World Rallycross Championship.

They both will race in the environmentally conscious electric SUV series that will hold events in five areas around the world that are threatened by climate change. Chip Ganassi Racing and six-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton also are fielding cars in Extreme E, which will feature male and female co-drivers on every team.

“I’m so excited to join Andretti United Extreme E,” Munnings said in a release. ““I was really intrigued when I first heard about Extreme E, I just knew I had to be involved. The male / female racing partnership is a fantastic and exciting new concept. The season has incredible locations and the racing will be very exciting. It will be a new challenge for the teams and drivers, and I’m so thrilled to be working with such a strong team.

“The championship is a really innovative concept, it’s combining motorsport and science and will produce an important legacy in each race location. Bringing the platform that motorsport has in line with the awareness that the planet needs right now is awesome and a really important message.”

Said Hansen: “Going into the Extreme E will be a new chapter in my career, one that I am extremely excited about. It is something brand new, not only for me, but the whole of motorsport. The format is something

we’ve never seen before. I’m also delighted to be able to carry the message of something bigger – talking about the environment and doing something good for the world – that’s something that really drives me. It’s going to be a big adventure in life to see these locations and I’m going to do my best in carrying this responsibility and hopefully making people aware of the challenges we have in the world, together with our passion for racing.”