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The championship contender capitalized on a tactical decision from the British team that flew in the face of decisions made by every other team during an early race safety car period

This proved to be a costly decision that gave up track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and in hindsight cost the victory for Piastri

Grand Prix Results and Title Consequences

The race winner triumphed to take his seventh win of the campaign, matching Norris and Piastri, while the Piastri was second and the British driver in fourth behind the Williams of the Spanish driver

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

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

To win the championship, Norris must secure a podium position at Yas Marina if his rival wins the race next race day

Critical Moments of the Dramatic Grand Prix

• McLaren's choice not to pit when a safety car was called on the seventh lap for a crash between Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg
• A decision led by the Australian to bring forward his final stop in a desperate attempt to catch the leader proved unsuccessful
• A unexpected second podium for the Williams driver handed by the team's strategy call

How McLaren Missed Out in Qatar

The critical moment for McLaren was when the two drivers collided as the German tried to overtake the Gasly around the exterior of Turn One 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 left exactly 50 laps left in the grand prix

With the tire manufacturer imposing a 25-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 Reactions and Post-Race Statements

Speechless

The McLaren driver added in his after-race interview: Obviously we made mistakes tonight My driving was the best race I could, as fast as I could, but there was no more pace out there Tried my best but didn't get it done

The race winner said: This was an amazing performance for us Our team executed the right call to pit That proved intelligent Furthermore extremely pleased to triumph in Qatar and stay in the fight to the head, remarkable

Ultimate Race Standings

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

Looking Ahead

The all-important championship finale at the Yas Marina The circuit itself does not produce the most thrilling racing, but once again this twilight race features an event which promises to be every bit as dramatic as Vettel's maiden championship in twenty-ten, or the Dutch driver's much-debated first title in twenty-twenty-one