Russell secures F2 title in Abu Dhabi

Mercedes junior driver George Russell will head to Formula 1 in 2019 as Formula 2 champion, having done enough to secure the crown in a thrilling Abu Dhabi feature race. Williams-bound Russell won the race from pole position, but title rival Alexander Albon was way down in 14th after featuring in early race mayhem.

DAMS driver Albon and teammate Nicholas Latifi stalled on the line – the latter coming off much worse as Arjun Maini ploughed into the bac of him, wiping both out of the race.

The chaos helped Albon remain in the race as he was just half a lap down at the safety car restart.

However, Albon - who has been linked with Toro Rosso's remaining 2019 drive - had to win to stand any chance of keeping the title fight alive, but he could not score a point.

Congratulations @GeorgeRussell63! ????

The 2018 @FIA_F2 Champion and he’s done it in style ???? #AbuDhabiGP ???????? pic.twitter.com/j1TU4ku9Wa — WILLIAMS RACING (@WilliamsRacing) November 24, 2018

Russell was pipped off the line by McLaren junior Nyck de Vries, but got the better of the Dutchman in the pitstop phase, pulling off the undercut to just edge his rival.

From there, Russell controlled the race superbly and held off a late charge from F2 veteran Artem Markelov, the Russian looking to cap his final outing at this level with a typically barnstorming run.

The 2019 Williams driver secured his seventh win of the season, equalling the record of Charles Leclerc and Stoffel Vandoorne at this level.

Russell will start Sunday's sprint race from eighth as he looks to take the record for himself, as the top eight of F2 races mirror on the grid in the second race.

Another 2019 F1 driver, Lando Norris, came home fifth, having seen his title challenge fizzle out in the latter half of the season after leading through the early going.

MORE: Hamilton leads Mercedes one-two with record Abu Dhabi lap
VIDEO: F2 race starts with TERRIFYING crash!