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The championship contender capitalized on a tactical decision from the British team that contradicted decisions made by every other team during an initial safety car period

This proved to be a expensive choice that gave up track position to Verstappen in the closing laps and in hindsight threw away the victory for Piastri

Race Outcome and Championship Consequences

The race winner won to take his 7th win of the season, matching the McLaren drivers, while the Piastri was second and the British driver in fourth behind the Williams car of Carlos Sainz

The McLaren driver won himself an extra two 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 moved ahead of Piastri by four points heading to the final race on 5-7 December

To win the title, Norris must finish at least third at Yas Marina if his rival takes victory next race day

Critical Events of the Dramatic Race

• The team's choice not to stop when a safety car was deployed on the seventh lap for a collision between the French team's Gasly and Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg
• A decision initiated by Piastri to bring forward his last pit stop in a last-ditch effort to catch Verstappen proved unsuccessful
• A surprise second podium for the Williams driver handed by the team's strategy call

The Way The British Team Lost Out in The Race

The fateful point for McLaren was when Gasly and Hulkenberg collided as the German tried to pass the Gasly around the exterior of the first corner on lap seven

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

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

With the tire manufacturer imposing a twenty-five lap maximum usage on the tires, that meant anyone who pitted at that moment was locked into a fixed plan with a second stop on the thirty-second lap

Competitor Responses and After the Event Comments

No words

The McLaren driver added in his after-race conversation: Obviously we made mistakes tonight I drove the best race I could, as quick as I could, but there was nothing left out there Tried my utmost but didn't get it done

The race winner said: This was an amazing performance for us We made the right call to pit It was intelligent And extremely pleased to win here and remain competitive to the head, incredible

Ultimate Grand Prix Positions

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

Looking Ahead

The crucial title decider at the Yas Marina The circuit itself does not create the most exciting racing, but yet again this twilight race hosts an event which appears set to become every bit as thrilling as Vettel's maiden championship in 2010, or Verstappen's much-debated first title in twenty-twenty-one