Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday to send a tense Formula 1 title fight into the season’s final race in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
Championship leader Lando Norris would have clinched his first F1 title with a win but finished in fourth place, with his McLaren teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri placing second.
All three title contenders have won seven races this season. Verstappen is aiming for a fifth straight F1 title, with Piastri and Norris chasing their first.
“That’s a very lovely race,” Verstappen said on team radio after his 70th career win. “Great job everyone.”
Norris can still become the first British driver to win the championship since Lewis Hamilton clinched the last of his seven titles in 2020. But having entered the Qatar GP weekend with a 24-point lead over both his rivals, Norris is now 12 points ahead of Verstappen and 16 clear of Piastri, who dropped to third overall.
“Speechless,” a dejected-sounding Piastri said. “I don’t know any words.”
McLaren's gamble backfires
Piastri started on pole position ahead of Norris, with Verstappen starting from third.
Although Verstappen overtook Norris heading into Turn 1, Piastri made a clean start and took a comfortable lead early on.
A strategy error cost McLaren after an early safety car prompted a flurry of tire changes, but both McLarens stayed out on track when Verstappen and the others came in.
This played into Verstappen’s hands and the elated Dutchman climbed out of his car and jumped into the arms of his mechanics and engineers after winning.
The safety car came out after Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber was sent spinning off the track on Lap 7 after being clipped by Alpine driver Pierre Gasly.
The decision to stay out on track was questioned over team radio by Norris, in a race where drivers had to take two mandatory pit stops over the 57 laps — a measure imposed on safety grounds due to a high risk of tire degradation at the Lusail International Circuit.
Changing tires behind the safety car constituted the equivalent of a free change, with no time lost. The McLaren team gambled on holding track position, leaving them at risk later on.
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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
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