The 2025 Formula One (F1) season is set for a thrilling finale as Red Bull’s Max Verstappen ensured a three-way showdown in the final stop in Abu Dhabi with a composed drive under the Lusail floodlights on Sunday (Nov 30) night to claim victory, his 70th overall, at the Qatar Grand Prix.
But a crucial tyre management slip-up by rivals McLaren, despite locking out the front row in qualifying, paved the way for the Dutch driver to capitalise, with championship leader Lando Norris finishing fourth behind the Williams of Carlos Sainz, while polesitter Oscar Piastri slipped to second.
The four-time world champion’s win from third in qualifying meant that he leapfrogged Piastri into second spot in the driver’s championship standings, and is just 12 points away from Norris, who sits on 408 points.
It also meant the fate of the coveted title will be decided in Abu Dhabi, four years after Verstappen’s controversial 2021 win over then-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
It has been an impressive comeback for the Dutchman, who has clawed his way back from as far back as 104 points off the summit to find himself still in the mix with one race left, but as much as his recent performances have been outstanding, much has to do with McLaren’s missteps in the business end of the season.
Verstappen had put himself in a good position from the get-go after a turn-one overtake of Norris, but it was pit strategy where the McLarens faltered.
A lap seven crash between Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg triggered a safety car intervention, which saw the entire grid freshen their tyres either immediately or a lap later, bar the McLarens.
That would provide their undoing as Piastri only pitted on lap 24, rejoining the race in fifth and then going to fourth when Norris pitted a lap later.
With tyres only allowed to run for a maximum of 25 laps, the field pitted on lap 32, and Verstappen could return to the track in third with just 7.7 seconds off the leader.
With the McLarens still due for one more pit stop in the 57-lap race, Piastri went in on lap 43 with teammate Norris pitting on 45.
Despite a lightning-quick stop for Piastri in just 1.8 seconds, it was not enough for the Australian, with a sizable gap already built by Verstappen as he eventually finished 7.9 seconds behind by race finish.
Norris, on the other hand, resumed the race in fifth, behind Sainz and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, whom he did manage to pass on the penultimate lap.
The Spaniard did well to secure his podium spot by fending off Antonelli and Norris, despite suffering floor damage, for his second of the season after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
This also meant the Williams secured their position in fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship (137 points) for their best finish since 2016, ahead of Racing Bulls (92 points).
George Russell came home in sixth place, followed by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso in seventh and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in eighth. Liam Lawson added two points for Racing Bulls, while Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda rounded out the top 10.
