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Verstappen capitalized on a strategy call from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car period

It was a costly decision that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and retrospectively threw away the race win for the Australian driver

Race Results and Title Consequences

The race winner triumphed to take his seventh win of the campaign, equalling the McLaren drivers, while the Australian was runner-up and the Briton in fourth behind the Williams of Carlos Sainz

Norris earned an extra two points by passing the Mercedes driver's Silver Arrow on the second-to-last lap

Norris has been left with a 12-point advantage over Verstappen, who moved ahead of Piastri by four points heading to Abu Dhabi on 5-7 December

To secure the title, Norris must secure a podium position at Yas Marina if Verstappen wins the race next Sunday

Key Events of the Thrilling Grand Prix

• The team's decision not to stop when a safety car was called on the seventh lap for a crash between the French team's Gasly and Sauber's Hulkenberg
• A decision initiated by Piastri to bring forward his last pit stop in a desperate attempt to challenge Verstappen came to nothing
• A unexpected podium finish for the Williams driver gifted by the team's strategy call

The Way McLaren Missed Out in Qatar

The critical moment for the team was when Gasly and Hulkenberg collided as the German tried to overtake the Gasly around the outside of Turn One on the seventh lap

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

The crucial part of the timing was that it meant there were 50 laps left in the race

With the tire manufacturer imposing a twenty-five lap safety limit on the tyres, that signified anyone who pitted at that moment was committed to a rigid strategy with a additional pit stop on lap 32

Driver Responses and Post-Race Comments

No words

The McLaren driver added in his post-race interview: Obviously we made mistakes tonight I drove the best race I was capable of, as fast as I could, but there was nothing left out there Attempted my best but couldn't secure victory

Verstappen said: This was an amazing performance for us We made the correct decision to box It was smart Furthermore super-happy to win here and stay in the fight to the end, remarkable

Final Grand Prix Positions

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

Looking Ahead

The crucial championship finale at the Yas Marina This venue does not create the most exciting competition, but once again this twilight race features an contest which appears set to become every bit as dramatic as Vettel's first title in twenty-ten, or the Dutch driver's highly controversial first title in twenty-twenty-one