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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 deployment

This proved to be a expensive choice that sacrificed track position to the Red Bull driver in the final stages and in hindsight cost the race win for Piastri

Grand Prix Results and Championship Implications

Verstappen won to take his seventh win of the season, matching the McLaren drivers, while the Piastri was second and the Briton in fourth behind the Williams car of the Spanish driver

Norris won himself an additional points by passing the Mercedes driver's Mercedes on the penultimate lap

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

To win the championship, the British driver must finish at least third at Yas Marina if his rival takes victory next race day

Key Moments of the Thrilling Race

• The team's decision not to stop when a yellow flag was deployed on the seventh lap for a collision between Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the Swiss team's Hulkenberg
• A strategy initiated by Piastri to advance his last pit stop in a desperate attempt to challenge Verstappen came to nothing
• A unexpected podium finish for the Williams driver gifted by McLaren's strategy call

The Way McLaren Missed Out in The Race

The fateful point for the team was when Gasly and Hulkenberg came together as the German tried to overtake the Frenchman around the exterior of Turn One on the seventh lap

The German's car was left damaged beside the circuit That brought out the safety car

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

With Pirelli imposing a twenty-five lap safety limit on the tyres, that signified anyone who made a stop at that moment was committed to a rigid strategy with a second stop on the thirty-second lap

Competitor Reactions and After the Event Comments

Speechless

The McLaren driver commented in his after-race interview: Obviously we didn't get it right tonight My driving was the strongest performance I could, as quick as I could, but there was no more pace out there Attempted my best but didn't get it done

Verstappen stated: That represented an incredible race for us We made the right call to pit That proved smart And super-happy to win here and remain competitive to the end, incredible

Ultimate Race Standings

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

Looking Ahead

The all-important title decider at the Yas Marina Circuit This venue does not produce the most thrilling competition, but once again this evening event features an event which promises to be every bit as dramatic as Vettel's maiden championship in 2010, or Verstappen's highly controversial first title in 2021