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The championship contender benefited from a tactical decision from McLaren that contradicted decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car deployment

It was a costly decision that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the closing laps and retrospectively cost the victory for Piastri

Race Results and Title Consequences

Verstappen triumphed to take his 7th win of the campaign, matching Norris and Piastri, while the Australian was second and the British driver fourth behind the Williams car of Carlos Sainz

Norris won himself an additional points by overtaking Kimi Antonelli's Silver Arrow on the second-to-last lap

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

To secure the title, the British driver must secure a podium position at Abu Dhabi if his rival wins the race next Sunday

Critical Moments of the Dramatic Race

• McLaren's choice not to stop when a yellow flag was deployed on the seventh lap for a crash between the French team's Gasly and the Swiss team's Hulkenberg
• A strategy led by Piastri to advance his last pit stop in a last-ditch effort to catch Verstappen proved unsuccessful
• A surprise second podium for the Williams driver gifted by the team's tactical decision

How McLaren Missed Out in The Race

The fateful point for McLaren was when the two drivers collided as the German tried to pass the Frenchman around the outside of Turn One on lap seven

Hulkenberg's car was damaged beside the track That brought out the yellow flag

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

With the tire manufacturer enforcing a 25-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

Competitor Reactions and After the Event Comments

No words

Piastri added in his after-race conversation: Clearly we didn't get it right tonight I drove the strongest performance I was capable of, as quick as I could, but there was nothing left out there Attempted my utmost but didn't get it done

The race winner said: This was an incredible race for us Our team executed the correct decision to pit It was smart Furthermore extremely pleased to win here and stay in the fight to the end, remarkable

Final Race Standings

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

What's Next?

The all-important title decider at the Yas Marina Circuit This venue does not create the most exciting racing, but yet again this evening event hosts an event which promises to be every bit as thrilling as Vettel's maiden championship in twenty-ten, or Verstappen's highly controversial first title in twenty-twenty-one