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The championship contender capitalized on a strategy call from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by all other squads during an initial safety car period

It was a expensive choice that gave up track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and retrospectively threw away the race win for Piastri

Grand Prix Results and Championship Consequences

The race winner triumphed to take his seventh win of the season, matching Norris and Piastri, while the Australian was second and the Briton fourth behind the Williams car of Carlos Sainz

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

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

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

Critical Events of the Dramatic Grand Prix

• McLaren's choice not to stop when a safety car was called on lap seven for a crash between Alpine's Gasly and Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg
• A strategy led by the Australian to bring forward his final stop in a last-ditch effort to catch the leader proved unsuccessful
• A unexpected second podium for the Williams driver gifted by the team's tactical decision

The Way The British Team Lost Out in The Race

The fateful point for McLaren was when Gasly and Hulkenberg came together as the German tried to pass 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 left exactly 50 laps left in the grand prix

With Pirelli enforcing a twenty-five lap safety limit on the tires, that signified anyone who made a stop at that moment was committed to a fixed plan with a second stop on lap 32

Competitor Reactions and After the Event Comments

Speechless

The McLaren driver commented in his after-race interview: Obviously we made mistakes tonight My driving was the strongest performance I was capable of, as quick as I possible, but there was nothing left out there Attempted my utmost but couldn't secure victory

Verstappen said: That represented an amazing performance for us Our team executed the correct decision to box That proved intelligent And super-happy to win here and stay in the fight to the head, remarkable

Final Race Positions

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

What's Next?

The all-important championship finale at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina The circuit itself does not create the most thrilling competition, but yet again this twilight race features an contest which appears set to become every bit as thrilling as Vettel's first title in 2010, or Verstappen's highly controversial initial championship in 2021