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Verstappen benefited from a strategy call from McLaren that flew in the face of decisions made by all other squads during an early race safety car deployment

It was a expensive choice that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and retrospectively threw away the victory for Piastri

Grand Prix Outcome and Championship Implications

Verstappen won to take his 7th victory of the campaign, equalling Norris and Piastri, while the Australian was second and the British driver in fourth behind the Williams of the Spanish driver

Norris earned an extra two points by passing the Mercedes driver's Silver Arrow on the second-to-last lap

Norris has been left with a 12-point advantage over his rival, who overtook his teammate by four points heading to the final race on 5-7 December

To secure the championship, Norris must finish at least third at Yas Marina if his rival takes victory next Sunday

Critical Moments of the Dramatic Grand Prix

• The team's choice not to pit when a yellow flag was called on lap seven for a crash between the French team's Gasly and the Swiss team's Nico Hulkenberg
• A decision led by the Australian to advance his last pit stop in a last-ditch effort to challenge Verstappen came to nothing
• A unexpected podium finish for the Williams driver gifted by the team's strategy call

How The British Team Missed Out in Qatar

The fateful moment for the team was when the two drivers came together as the Hulkenberg tried to overtake the Frenchman around the exterior of Turn One on lap seven

Hulkenberg's car was damaged beside the track This triggered the yellow flag

The crucial part of the timing was that it meant there were 50 laps remaining in the grand prix

With the tire manufacturer enforcing a 25-lap maximum usage on the tyres, that signified anyone who made a stop at that moment was locked into a fixed plan with a additional pit stop on the thirty-second lap

Driver Reactions and Post-Race Statements

Speechless

Piastri commented in his after-race interview: Obviously we made mistakes tonight My driving was the best race I could, as fast as I possible, but there was nothing left out there Attempted my best but didn't get it done

Verstappen stated: That represented an amazing performance for us We made the right call to pit It was smart Furthermore extremely pleased to win here and stay in the fight to the head, incredible

Ultimate Grand Prix Positions

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

What's Next?

The crucial title decider at the Yas Marina Circuit The circuit itself does not create the most exciting competition, but yet again this evening event hosts an event which appears set to become every bit as dramatic as Sebastian Vettel's first title in twenty-ten, or Verstappen's highly controversial initial championship in 2021