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Verstappen benefited from a tactical decision from McLaren that flew in the face of decisions made by all other squads during an initial safety car deployment

It was a expensive choice that gave up track position to Verstappen in the closing laps and in hindsight threw away the victory for the Australian driver

Race Outcome and Championship Implications

The race winner won to take his seventh victory of the season, equalling the McLaren drivers, while the Piastri was runner-up and the Briton fourth behind the Williams of Carlos Sainz

Norris won himself an extra two points by passing Kimi Antonelli's Mercedes on the penultimate lap

The championship leader has been maintained a twelve point lead over his rival, who moved ahead of Piastri by four points heading to the final race on 5-7 December

To secure the title, Norris must finish at least third at Abu Dhabi if his rival takes victory next race day

Critical Events of the Dramatic Grand Prix

• McLaren's choice not to pit when a safety car was called on the seventh lap for a collision between the French team's Pierre Gasly and Sauber's Hulkenberg
• A decision initiated by the Australian to advance his last pit stop in a desperate attempt to challenge Verstappen came to nothing
• A unexpected second podium for Sainz handed by the team's strategy call

How McLaren Lost Out in Qatar

The critical point for the team was when the two drivers came together as the Hulkenberg tried to overtake the Gasly around the outside of the first corner on lap seven

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

The crucial part of the timing was that it left exactly 50 laps left in the grand prix

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

Competitor Responses and Post-Race Comments

No words

Piastri commented in his post-race conversation: Clearly we didn't get it right tonight My driving was the strongest performance I could, 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 incredible race for us We made the right call to box It was intelligent Furthermore super-happy to triumph in Qatar and remain competitive to the head, incredible

Final Grand Prix Positions

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

What's Next?

The all-important championship finale at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit This venue does not produce the most exciting competition, but once again this twilight race hosts an contest which appears set to become every bit as dramatic as Vettel's first title in twenty-ten, or Verstappen's highly controversial initial championship in 2021