After securing his fourth consecutive world title in Las Vegas last week, Max Verstappen followed up with victory in the Qatar Grand prix.
Despite qualifying on pole, the Red Bull driver started from second on the grid, behind the Mercedes of George Russell after he was adjudged to have impeded the Mercedes driver before he could start his last flying lap – a decision that clearly infuriated Verstappen based upon his post-race comments about the British driver.
However, in the end it didn’t matter as Verstappen made his usual quick start and overtook Russell into the first corner. The Mercedes was pushed down into third as the McLaren of Lando Norris sneaked up the inside to take second place, leading to an intense battle between the Red Bull and McLaren drivers. A first lap crash between Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg and Franco Colapinto led to an early safety car and the end of the race for the Alpine and Williams’ drivers.
The outcome of the race was decided by a 10-second stop and go penalty for Lando Norris which was given when the British driver failed to slow under yellow flags. It was a contentious decision, one that has subsequently led McLaren to raise a request to the FIA for a formal inquiry into the severity of the punishment given to Norris. Given the repercussions this could have on the outcome of the constructors title, with McLaren holding a 21 point advantage over Ferrari going into the final race, the FIA will be hoping the decision does not have any direct influence over the constructors title battle.
A special mention must also go to Zhou Guanyu who secured Sauber’s first points of the season with a brilliant 8th place finish.
The Formula One season concludes next week with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and given how even the second half of the season has been, fans will be hoping that the new season brings as much excitement with multiple teams and drivers in title contention.
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