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The championship contender benefited from a tactical decision from McLaren that flew in the face of decisions made by all other squads during an early race safety car period

It was a expensive choice that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the closing laps and in hindsight threw away the race win for Piastri

Race Outcome and Title Consequences

The race winner won to take his 7th win of the season, equalling the McLaren drivers, while the Piastri was runner-up and the Briton fourth behind the Williams car of Carlos Sainz

Norris earned an additional points by passing the Mercedes driver's Silver Arrow on the penultimate lap

Norris has been maintained a twelve point lead over Verstappen, who overtook his teammate by four points heading to the final race on December 5-7

To secure the title, the British driver must secure a podium position at Yas Marina if his rival takes victory next Sunday

Critical Moments of the Dramatic Race

• McLaren's choice not to pit when a yellow flag was deployed on lap seven for a collision between the French team's Pierre Gasly and the Swiss team's Hulkenberg
• A decision initiated by the Australian to bring forward his last pit stop in a desperate attempt to catch Verstappen came to nothing
• A surprise second podium for the Williams driver handed by McLaren's tactical decision

The Way The British Team Missed Out in Qatar

The fateful point for the team was when Gasly and Hulkenberg collided as the Hulkenberg tried to overtake the Frenchman around the outside of the first corner on lap seven

Hulkenberg'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 the tire manufacturer imposing a twenty-five lap maximum usage on the tyres, 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

Piastri commented in his after-race conversation: Clearly we didn't get it right tonight My driving was the strongest performance I could, as fast as I possible, but there was no more pace out there Attempted my best but didn't get it done

The race winner said: That represented an incredible race for us We made the right call to box It was smart Furthermore extremely pleased to triumph in Qatar and remain competitive to the end, incredible

Final Race Positions

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

Looking Ahead

The all-important title decider at the Yas Marina This venue does not create the most thrilling competition, but yet again this evening event hosts an contest which appears set to become every bit as thrilling as Vettel's maiden championship in twenty-ten, or Verstappen's much-debated initial championship in 2021