Formula’s 2025 season will be decided with a thrilling three-way title decider in Abu Dhabi after Max Verstappen beat Oscar Piastri to win the Qatar Grand Prix and championship leader Lando Norris finished fourth.
The battle for victory took a turn on lap seven when a collision between Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly over ninth place brought out the safety car.
McLaren teammates Piastri and Norris, who were running first and third at the time, did not pit, while second place Verstappen did not. The rest of the field changed fresh tires after the Red Bull driver.
Race stints for this event were limited to a maximum of 25 laps due to tire issues on the high-speed track, and the McLaren duo pitted one more time than Red Bull and should have built a lead over Verstappen from that point on, but were unable to do so.
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Alpine’s Pierre Gasly collides with Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg, safety car introduced at Qatar GP
Piastri still finished second, but Norris, who would have won his first title with just one round to go, finished fourth. He was fifth on the penultimate lap until a mistake by Kimi Antonelli forced his McLaren out.
Verstappen is currently Norris’ closest challenger in the standings, with the Dutchman 12 points clear of Norris. Piastri is a further four points behind next week’s season-ending Abu Dhabi race, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1.
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Qatar GP ends with Max Verstappen finishing first ahead of fellow title challenger Oscar Piastri
Carlos Sainz also took advantage of McLaren’s obvious strategic error to finish third for his Williams, capping off a great weekend for the Spaniard.
More to come…
The 2025 F1 season concludes with the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
