🔗 Share this article

The championship contender capitalized on a strategy call from the British team that flew in the face of decisions made by all other squads during an early race safety car period

It was a expensive choice that gave up track position to Verstappen in the final stages and retrospectively threw away the victory for the Australian driver

Grand Prix Outcome and Championship Implications

Verstappen triumphed to take his seventh victory of the campaign, matching Norris and Piastri, while the Australian was runner-up and the British driver fourth behind the Williams car of Carlos Sainz

Norris won himself an additional points by overtaking the Mercedes driver's Mercedes on the penultimate lap

Norris has been left with a twelve point advantage over his rival, who moved ahead of his teammate by four points heading to the final race on December 5-7

To win the championship, the British driver must secure a podium position at Abu Dhabi if his rival wins the race next race day

Key Moments of the Dramatic Grand Prix

• McLaren's decision not to stop when a yellow flag was deployed on the seventh lap for a collision between Alpine's Gasly and Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg
• A strategy led by the Australian to advance his final stop in a desperate attempt to catch the leader came to nothing
• A unexpected second podium for the Williams driver gifted by the team's tactical decision

The Way The British Team Missed Out in Qatar

The fateful point for the team was when the two drivers came together as the German tried to pass the Frenchman around the outside of the first corner on lap seven

The German's car was damaged beside the circuit This triggered the yellow flag

The crucial part of the timing was that it left exactly 50 laps remaining in the race

With Pirelli enforcing a 25-lap maximum usage on the tires, that signified anyone who made a stop at that time was committed to a rigid strategy with a additional pit stop on the thirty-second lap

Competitor Reactions and Post-Race Statements

No words

Piastri commented in his after-race conversation: Clearly we didn't get it right tonight I drove the best race I could, as fast as I possible, but there was no more pace out there Attempted my utmost but couldn't secure victory

The race winner stated: This was an amazing performance for us We made the right call to box That proved intelligent Furthermore extremely pleased to triumph in Qatar and stay in the fight to the end, remarkable

Ultimate Grand Prix Standings

• 1. Verstappen (Red Bull)
• 2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
• 3. Carlos Sainz (Williams Racing)
• 4. Norris (McLaren Racing)
• 5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes-AMG)
• 6. Russell (Mercedes-AMG)
• 7. Alonso (Aston Martin F1)
• 8. Leclerc (Ferrari)
• 9. Lawson (Racing Bulls)
• 10. Tsunoda (Red Bull Racing)

What's Next?

The crucial championship finale at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit The circuit itself does not produce the most exciting racing, but once again this evening event hosts an contest which promises to be every bit as thrilling as Sebastian Vettel's maiden championship in twenty-ten, or the Dutch driver's much-debated initial championship in 2021