ABU DHABI // As he prepares to finish his third, full season in Formula One, Williams driver Valtteri Bottas already has his name in the record books, not that he is particularly happy about it.
“There is a not-so-nice statistic that I am the driver with the most points in Formula One without a win, ever, so I need to fix that,” he said Wednesday during a media event at the Yas Viceroy Hotel ahead of Sunday’s Formula One Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
“I want to get that win so much, and I am trying hard to get it.”
The 26-year-old Finn has scored 326 points in his first 55 races in F1, having made his debut in 2013, and the closest he has come to taking the chequered flag s two second-place finishes, in Britain and Germany last year.
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Sunday will be Bottas’s 56th attempt ata race win, but while he and Williams have generally gone well at Yas Marina Circuit in the past, where he finished third in last year’s race and teammate Felipe Massa second, he is realistic about his chances of victoryon Sunday.
“Our car is pretty good around here,” he said. “Our car’s strengths are pretty visible around here: the long straights, chicanes and short corners are good for us.
“The only problem is Mercedes and Ferrari. They have been quick everywhere this season and I don’t expect that to be any different this year.”
As the Mercedes-GP and Ferraris have dominated at the front the chances to finish on the podium have been even harder to achieve in 2015, with third-place finishes in Canada and Mexico Bottas’s best results so far, compared to the six, top-three results he had in 2014.
Bottas remains upbeat he can fight with the Ferraris, and said: “I think we can be closer than the last race but it is not going to be easy.
“We have secured third place in the championship in the constructors already, so that is good, but, for me, there is a bit of a fight going on to get fourth place” in the drivers’ standings.
The Finn holds a one-point lead over compatriot Kimi Raikkonen going into the race weekend in a rivalry that has added much-needed excitement in the second half of the season with the pair colliding in both Russia and Mexico.
Bottas played down any ill-feeling between him and the Ferrari driver, but acknowledged they had not spoken about the incidents directly.
“No, we have not,” he said of any dialogue being shared. “But there is nothing to really speak about.
“I think we both realise this is racing and sometimes you hit and it was unlucky it was me and him two times in a row, and from the same nation. Then, of course, the media make it a bit more of a story. But, from my point of view, there is no problem and I am sure that is the same with him.”
gcaygill@thenational.ae
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The five pillars of Islam
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
How to turn your property into a holiday home
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West Indies v India - Third ODI
India 251-4 (50 overs)
Dhoni (78*), Rahane (72), Jadhav (40)
Cummins (2-56), Bishoo (1-38)
West Indies 158 (38.1 overs)
Mohammed (40), Powell (30), Hope (24)
Ashwin (3-28), Yadav (3-41), Pandya (2-32)
India won by 93 runs
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Install an air filter in your home.
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The story of Edge
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, established Edge in 2019.
It brought together 25 state-owned and independent companies specialising in weapons systems, cyber protection and electronic warfare.
Edge has an annual revenue of $5 billion and employs more than 12,000 people.
Some of the companies include Nimr, a maker of armoured vehicles, Caracal, which manufactures guns and ammunitions company, Lahab
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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