DOHA, Nov 30 : Red Bull's Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix, while McLaren blew it, to take the Formula One title battle with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to a season-ending showdown in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
Championship leader Norris finished fourth, behind the Williams of Spaniard Carlos Sainz, with the Briton's advantage slashed to 12 points as McLaren paid a heavy price for a strategy blunder when the safety car was deployed early on.
Verstappen's third win in a row in the night race moved the four-times world champion up to second in the standings, now four points clear of Norris's Australian teammate Piastri who started on pole but finished second.
The top three drivers each have seven wins for the season.
"We stay in the fight until the end," said Verstappen, who has been champion since a controversial 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix duel with Lewis Hamilton.
"It's still possible now," added the Dutchman, who has staged an astonishing comeback from 104 points off the lead at the end of August when his hopes of remaining in the reckoning right down to the wire looked over.
MCLAREN STAY OUT AS ALL BUT OCON PIT
McLaren stayed out while everyone else except Haas's Esteban Ocon pitted after Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg tangled with Alpine's Pierre Gasly on lap seven and triggered the safety car.
"I think in hindsight it's pretty obvious what we could have done," said Piastri of the strategy blunder.
"We lost the victory with Oscar and we lost the podium with Lando," was the verdict of team boss Andrea Stella.
Verstappen, third on the grid, passed Norris at the start to slot into second behind Piastri while Mercedes' George Russell plunged from fourth to seventh.
The pitstop dropped the Red Bull to fourth but that became third
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