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The championship contender capitalized on a strategy call from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car deployment

This proved to be a costly decision that gave up track position to the Red Bull driver in the closing laps and in hindsight cost the race win for Piastri

Race Results and Title Implications

Verstappen won to take his 7th victory of the season, matching the McLaren drivers, while the Australian was runner-up and the British driver 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

The championship leader has been maintained a twelve point lead over Verstappen, who moved ahead of Piastri by four points heading to Abu Dhabi on December 5-7

To secure the title, the British driver must secure a podium position at Abu Dhabi if Verstappen wins the race next Sunday

Key Events of the Thrilling Race

• The team's decision not to stop when a safety car was called on lap seven for a collision between the French team's Pierre Gasly and Sauber's Hulkenberg
• A decision led by the Australian to advance his last pit stop in a last-ditch effort to catch the leader came to nothing
• A unexpected second podium for the Williams driver gifted by McLaren's tactical decision

The Way The British Team Missed Out in Qatar

The critical point for McLaren was when Gasly and Hulkenberg came together as the Hulkenberg tried to overtake the Gasly around the exterior of the first corner on lap seven

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

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

With the tire manufacturer enforcing a 25-lap safety limit on the tires, that meant anyone who made a stop at that moment was locked into a fixed plan with a second stop on lap 32

Driver Reactions and After the Event Comments

No words

The McLaren driver added in his after-race interview: Obviously we made mistakes tonight I drove the best race I was capable of, as quick as I could, but there was nothing left out there Tried my best but didn't get it done

The race winner stated: This was an incredible race for us Our team executed the right call to pit That proved intelligent And super-happy to win here and remain competitive to the end, incredible

Final Race Standings

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

Looking Ahead

The all-important title decider at the Yas Marina The circuit itself does not produce the most exciting racing, but yet again this evening event features an event which promises to be every bit as dramatic as Vettel's maiden championship in 2010, or Verstappen's highly controversial initial championship in 2021