A Bad decision by McLaren At the beginning of the race, he turned the World Cup upside down. The Woking team decided to keep Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on the track after their accident on lap seven, with the safety car on track. … The rest of the drivers entered the pits and Max Verstappen was the biggest beneficiary, giving a big boost to the advantage that Norris had over him. The Dutchman won the race he followed Piastri and Carlos Sainz. Norris could only finish fourth, squandering the first match point to say the World Cup would have a champion in Abu Dhabi. Norris will arrive at Yas Marina as the captain and favorite to win the title but he feels breathing on his neck. Verstappen is already second with 12 points Piastri is in third place with 16 points. The Briton needs to finish third in Abu Dhabi, at the very least, to be champion, no matter what his rivals do.
Oscar Piastri He tried to put it against the ropes Lando NorrisHe was hasty in all his choices. The Australian started from pole position after a perfect weekend in which he dominated all sessions and won the sprint race. With a 22-point lead over his sparring partner, he couldn’t afford to falter, especially considering Norris started right behind him at the net. and Max Vestappen In the Tawaf, with few options but third place at the start and waiting for the mistake that bites the rope of his competitors. Both the Australian and the Dutchman had to finish ahead of the Briton to reach Abu Dhabi with a real chance of competing for the championship. Carlos Sainz It started at seven o’clock Fernando AlonsoEighth.
All with medium tires except… Hulkenberg and Hamilton With soft and Colapinto Strongly, Piastri maintained first place, and Verstappen overtook Norris, who remained in third place, with amazing ease. The Briton was driving with his calculator in his hand and trying not to be disqualified from the race. Sainz and Alonso They gained positions and were placed behind Antonelli who was driving fourth. In a circle in it Overtaking is very complicatedincluded strategic choices and tire degradation. Attack and risk losing rubber or stay back and take care of the tires? That was the question on Verstappen’s mind, second behind Piastri.
Safetycar on the seventh lap after A Hulkenberg accident When you touch Gasly. The Sauber was left stranded on the track after colliding with a wall. The Frenchman was punctured by Haas and was penalized. Norris and Piastri They didn’t go to the pits to change tires. McLaren, are the only ones who decided to stay the course despite their lead. Verstappen He actually started from fourth place, after Ocon, but the Frenchman finished last after a penalty for touching Hulkenberg. McLaren, with its decision, left the race in the hands of chance, because if there were no further incidents, they would have to stop on lap 25. Norris and Piastri, Had to pull very hard And the possibility of entering traffic after stopping. Piastri was first in and exited in fifth place leading Alonso. 3.1 Stop with clean air in front of you. Next up was Norris, who had to make an excellent stop to avoid too many cars passing him. It was also a good stop and he was able to maintain the real second place by a small margin, even though his position was fifth behind Piastri, waiting for everyone in front of him to stop.
Lap 32. They asked everyone to change wheels, except for the McLaren. VerstappenThe third one became the favorite to win the race. Piastri led, followed by Norris. Carlos SainzThe fourth was struggling to get onto the podium. Alonso remained seventh. With his second pit stop, Norris started fifth behind Antonelli and Piastri, second behind Verstappen, the race leader. Sainz finished third. The World Cup finals will be decided in Abu Dhabi. to Norris It is enough for him to be third to be the champion, although the options are diverse, but both Verstappen and Piastri have a chance to win.