Max Verstappen has a chance at his fifth straight F1 title. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Three drivers will race for the 2025 Formula 1 title in Abu Dhabi.
Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday ahead of Oscar Piastri in second and Lando Norris in fourth. With Verstappen scoring 25 points for the win, Piastri getting 18 for second and Norris earning 12 for fourth, Norris leads Verstappen by 12 points and Piastri by 16 points heading into the final race of the season.
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Verstappen started third but moved to second on the opening lap ahead of Norris and capitalized on an early safety car. Pierre Gasly crashed into Nico Hulkenberg on lap 7 in Turn 1. With Pirelli mandating each team pit twice over the course of the 57-lap race and that tires could not be run longer than 25 laps, the timing of the crash opened the first pit window for the entire field.
Verstappen — and nearly everyone else in the field — took advantage of the safety car to pit. The McLarens of Piastri and Norris didn’t. And that cost them a shot at the race.
The race went caution-free the rest of the way, meaning that Norris and Piastri had to pit twice under green while Verstappen and the rest of the field only had to pit once. The loss of track position on the second stop put the McLarens nowhere near Verstappen at the front, as Carlos Sainz held on to finish third.
Kimi Antonelli looked like he had enough pace to hold off Norris for fourth, but he slid wide on the penultimate lap and Norris was able to slip through.
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It was a massive moment — and one that could loom incredibly large in Abu Dhabi. Had Norris finished fifth, he would have scored 10 points and the gap to Verstappen would be 10 points. If Verstappen won next week in Abu Dhabi and Norris finished third, Verstappen would win a fifth straight championship thanks to having the most wins in 2025.
Instead, a top-three finish for Norris clinches the title no matter what anyone else does.
Piastri, meanwhile, can feel like he should be closer to Norris. McLaren was absolutely caught out by everyone else under the safety car and while they told their drivers that the strategy to stay out gave them more flexibility, it also meant they were chasing the race.
Will that strategy backfire in Abu Dhabi? If Verstappen is celebrating a world title once again, McLaren won’t have anyone to blame but themselves.
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Qatar Grand Prix race results
1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2. Oscar Piastri, McLaren
3. Carlos Sainz, Williams
4. Lando Norris, McLaren
5. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
6. George Russell, Mercedes
7. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
8. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
9. Liam Lawson, RB
10. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
11. Alex Albon, Williams
12. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
13. Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber
14. Franco Colapinto, Alpine
15. Esteban Ocon, Haas
16. Pierre Gasly, Alpine
17. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
18. Isack Hadjar, RB
Not classified; Oliie Bearman, Haas; Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber
