David Coulthard has hailed the new Yas Marina circuit as an "11 out of 10" venue ahead of Formula One venturing into new territory this weekend.

Coulthard was given a sneak preview of the track earlier this month as he, along with Martin Brundle and Bruno Senna, shepherded around an exclusive group of the sport's media in two-seater F1 cars.

"I think they will like it," said Coulthard, a 13-time grand prix winner. "It does seem to flow and that is what they will look for."

With its unique pit-lane tunnel exit, a 500-seater, five-star hotel that straddles the track and the longest straight in F1 at 1.2km, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix promises to be something special.

The circuit can also boast that every one of the 50,000 spectators will be seated under a covered grandstand, and the floodlighting - given it is the sport's first day-to-night race - will be superior than that used in Singapore for the night event.

The hotel itself is spectacular as it is overlaid with a sweeping shell comprising 5,800 LCD panels that glow a variety of colours, and can even display messages.

As Coulthard remarked, it will be "visually impressive", but the acid test for any new circuit is whether it will appeal to the drivers and provide enough on-track excitement.

He added: "It's a step change in the philosophy design of race tracks, and that's because of the widespread use of this new barrier.

"It looks like it's reduced the run-off area by a third, which will lead to more incidents, and is part of the game of Formula One.

"You go around Monaco where you've no run off, you make a mistake and you are out of the race. But at some of the more modern tracks the guys keep pushing until they go off the circuit, and that's them finding the limit."