EVEN when Lewis Hamilton was fighting for world championships in 2007 and ’08, he never showed such dominant form as he served up in qualifying yesterday for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. His pole-position lap was 0.7 sec quicker than that of the next fastest man, Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.

Given a straightforward race today, Hamilton’s superiority is such that he need barely break sweat, especially as the dusk-to-nightfall timing of the race at this spectacular new venue brings a pleasant cooling of the desert air.

But even should he score maximum points today, Hamilton can finish no higher than his current fifth place in the championship, and that’s very much a reflection of the woeful performance of his McLaren in the first half of the season, when Jenson Button’s Brawn was winning six of the first seven races.

Had the championship started at the German Grand Prix, halfway through the year, when McLaren made a breakthrough with the car’s aerodynamics, Hamilton would now be leading comfortably, having scored 15 points more in the latter half-season than new world champion Button, who lines up for today’s race fifth. “That was as fun as it looked,” said Hamilton after his devastating lap. “That’s definitely the best the car’s been all year. Looking at the gap, we could have fuelled heavier and still got pole.” Theoretically, Vettel has fuel for one extra lap over Hamilton but this is a strategic advantage only if he can remain within a second or so of the McLaren as the first pit stops approach.That looks unlikely.

“I didn’t have any particular doubts [I could get pole],” continued Hamilton, “but lots can of things go wrong. You need to find the gaps in traffic, you need to keep your tyres up to temperature, but we managed all of that and I think where we are is a good reflection of our performance.”

Vettel referred to the McLaren’s regenerative-energy Kers system, the power boost of which is worth around 0.4 sec per lap over the Red Bull. But even he acknowledged that didn’t explain the extent of Hamilton’s speed. Vettel is two points clear in a struggle with Brawn driver Rubens Barrichello for second place in the championship, with Barrichello starting fourth today. This is the ninth consecutive race in which Button has been out-qualified by his teammate. Any chance of him even seeing which way Hamilton headed into the twilight looks slim.

The lavish Yas Marina island venue and the unusual track have earned rave reviews from the drivers. Asked if he could think of a negative about the place, Mark Webber joked: “You know we get paid backhanders to say only positive things! That deal was done long ago. It’s a great, great venue!” Which just summarised the irreverent end-of-term atmosphere of the weekend.

Indeed, much of the paddock was keen to get post-qualifying duties out of the way so they could head off to the Kings of Leon concert on the island last night.

For Hamilton, a victory beneath the floodlights today would be much more significant as a warning shot to his rivals for next year than any impact it has upon his 2009 season.

- Mark Hughes writes for Autosport magazine

Qualifying results Saturday for Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the 5.554-kilometer (3.451-mile) Yas Marina circuit (with driver, country, car, fastest lap time):

1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1min 40.948secs
2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:41.615
3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:41.726
4 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:41.786
5 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:41.892
6 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:41.897
7 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:41.992
8 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:42.343
9 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:42.589
10 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:42.713
11 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:40.726
12 Kamui Kobayashi (Jpn) Toyota 1:40.777
13 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:40.983
14 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:41.148
15 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:41.689
16 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:41.667
17 Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) Force India 1:41.701
18 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:41.863
19 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Renault 1:41.950
20 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Ferrari 1:42.184