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The championship contender benefited from a strategy call from the British team that flew in the face of decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car period

It was a expensive choice that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and in hindsight cost the race win for the Australian driver

Grand Prix Results and Championship Consequences

Verstappen won to take his seventh win of the season, matching the McLaren drivers, while the Piastri was second and the Briton in fourth behind the Williams car of the Spanish driver

Norris earned an extra two points by passing Kimi Antonelli's Silver Arrow on the penultimate lap

Norris has been left with a 12-point lead over his rival, who moved ahead of Piastri by four points heading to the final race on December 5-7

To secure the title, the British driver must finish at least third at Abu Dhabi if Verstappen wins the race next race day

Critical Moments of the Thrilling Race

• The team's decision not to pit when a yellow flag was deployed on the seventh lap for a collision between Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Sauber's Hulkenberg
• A decision initiated by the Australian to bring forward his last pit stop in a desperate attempt to challenge Verstappen came to nothing
• A unexpected second podium for the Williams driver gifted by McLaren's tactical decision

How McLaren Lost Out in Qatar

The fateful moment for McLaren was when the two drivers collided as the Hulkenberg tried to overtake the Gasly around the outside of the first corner on the seventh lap

Hulkenberg's car was damaged beside the track That brought out the yellow flag

The crucial part of the timing was that it meant there were 50 laps remaining in the grand prix

With Pirelli imposing a 25-lap maximum usage on the tyres, that signified anyone who made a stop at that time was committed to a fixed plan with a second stop on the thirty-second lap

Competitor Responses and After the Event Statements

Speechless

Piastri added in his after-race interview: Clearly we made mistakes tonight My driving was the best race I was capable of, as fast as I could, but there was no more pace out there Attempted my utmost but couldn't secure victory

Verstappen stated: This was an amazing performance for us Our team executed the right call to pit That proved intelligent And extremely pleased to triumph in Qatar and remain competitive to the end, incredible

Ultimate Race Standings

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

What's Next?

The all-important championship finale at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina The circuit itself does not create the most thrilling competition, but once again this evening event hosts an contest which promises to be every bit as thrilling as Vettel's maiden championship in 2010, or the Dutch driver's much-debated initial championship in 2021