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Verstappen benefited from a tactical decision from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car period

It was a costly decision that gave up track position to Verstappen in the final stages and in hindsight cost the victory for the Australian driver

Grand Prix Results and Title Consequences

The race winner triumphed to take his seventh win of the season, matching Norris and Piastri, while the Australian was runner-up and the British driver fourth behind the Williams of Carlos Sainz

The McLaren driver won himself an extra two points by overtaking the Mercedes driver's Silver Arrow on the second-to-last lap

The championship leader has been maintained a 12-point advantage over his rival, who overtook his teammate by four points heading to Abu Dhabi on December 5-7

To secure the title, Norris must secure a podium position at Yas Marina if his rival wins the race next Sunday

Key Moments of the Thrilling Grand Prix

• McLaren's decision not to pit when a safety car was deployed on lap seven for a collision between Alpine's Gasly and the Swiss team's Nico Hulkenberg
• A strategy led by the Australian to advance his final stop in a desperate attempt to challenge Verstappen proved unsuccessful
• A unexpected podium finish for Sainz gifted by McLaren's strategy call

How McLaren Missed Out in The Race

The fateful moment for McLaren was when the two drivers collided as the German tried to overtake the Frenchman around the exterior of the first corner on the seventh lap

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

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

With Pirelli enforcing a twenty-five lap maximum usage on the tires, that meant anyone who made a stop at that moment was locked into a rigid strategy with a second stop on the thirty-second lap

Driver Reactions and After the Event Comments

No words

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

Verstappen said: That represented an amazing performance for us We made the correct decision to box That proved smart Furthermore extremely pleased to triumph in Qatar and remain competitive to the head, remarkable

Ultimate Grand Prix Standings

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

What's Next?

The all-important title decider at the Yas Marina Circuit The circuit itself does not produce the most exciting racing, but yet again this twilight race features an event which promises to be every bit as thrilling as Vettel's first title in 2010, or the Dutch driver's highly controversial initial championship in 2021