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Verstappen benefited from a strategy call from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by all other squads during an initial safety car period

This proved to be a expensive choice that gave up track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and retrospectively cost the race win for the Australian driver

Race Outcome and Championship Consequences

The race winner won to take his seventh win of the campaign, equalling Norris and Piastri, while the Piastri was second and the Briton fourth behind the Williams of the Spanish driver

The McLaren driver won himself an extra two points by overtaking Kimi Antonelli's Mercedes on the penultimate lap

The championship leader has been left with a twelve point advantage over Verstappen, who overtook his teammate by four points heading to the final race on December 5-7

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

Key Moments of the Thrilling Race

• The team's decision not to stop when a safety car was called on the seventh lap for a collision between the French team's Pierre Gasly and Sauber's Hulkenberg
• A strategy initiated by the Australian to bring forward his last pit stop in a last-ditch effort to challenge Verstappen proved unsuccessful
• A surprise podium finish for the Williams driver gifted by the team's tactical decision

The Way McLaren Lost Out in The Race

The fateful moment for McLaren was when the two drivers came together as the German tried to pass the Gasly around the exterior 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 remaining in the race

With the tire manufacturer imposing a 25-lap safety limit on the tires, that signified anyone who pitted at that time was committed to a rigid strategy with a additional pit stop on the thirty-second lap

Driver Responses and After the Event Comments

No words

The McLaren driver added in his after-race interview: Clearly we didn't get it right tonight I drove the strongest performance I could, as fast as I could, but there was nothing left out there Attempted my utmost but couldn't secure victory

The race winner said: That represented an amazing performance for us We made the right call to box It was intelligent And super-happy to triumph in Qatar and remain competitive to the head, incredible

Final Grand Prix Positions

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

What's Next?

The crucial title decider at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit This venue does not create the most exciting racing, but once again this twilight race features an contest which appears set to become every bit as thrilling as Sebastian Vettel's maiden championship in 2010, or the Dutch driver's much-debated initial championship in twenty-twenty-one