RENAULT, as expected, secured fourth place in the Formula 1 constructors’ championship as the season ended in Abu Dhabi.

The Renault-based side, who went into the final race with a commanding advantage over fifth-placed Haas, from Banbury, sealed their high finish when Carlos Sainz came home in sixth.

His points were also enough to secure Sainz tenth spot in the individual standings, with teammate Nico Hulkenberg seventh overall, despite a spectacular first-lap crash.

The Haas duo of Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean secured ninth and 14th places, having both finished in the points yesterday.

There were eventually 29 points between the teams.

The Grove-based Williams outfit, however, will be delighted to see the back of the season with Lance Stroll and Sergey Sirotkin both out of the points yet again.

The team picked up just seven points in the 21 races.

Hulkenberg clashed with Grosjean on the opening lap, the duo touching wheels which sent the Renault driver into a dramatic series of flips towards the barriers.

“I couldn’t see him,” Hulkenberg said. “He was in my blindspot and the rest is history.”

Champion Lewis Hamilton won the race, his 11th victory of the season.