Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen shook up the championship standings after winning the Qatar Grand Prix this Sunday at the Lusail International Circuit. With a precise strategy—a pit stop behind the safety car on lap 7 following the accident involving Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly—the Dutchman secured victory just when many thought the championship was decided. "Now anything is possible; there's less and less time left until the finale," he confidently stated. "It was an incredible race for us. We made the right decision to pit when the safety car came out; everything worked out well," commented Verstappen, aware of the turnaround that pit stop brought. He added: "Today we made up for the problems of the previous days. We had a good race on a weekend that looked like it was going to be very tough for us." Thanks to the victory in Qatar—along with Oscar Piastri's second place and Lando Norris's fourth—Verstappen now has 396 points, just 12 points behind Norris (408), keeping the title race alive until the final race in Abu Dhabi. “It was an interesting decision where we had to create a significant gap and conserve the tires, and we managed it,” the Dutchman added, referring to his strategy.

Possible scenarios for winning the Formula 1 championship

With a maximum of 26 points up for grabs (25 for a win + 1 for the fastest lap), the World Championship is wide open. These are the paths:

If Verstappen wants to be champion:– He must finish ahead of Norris, no matter what.– If he wins without the fastest lap, he needs Norris to finish 3rd or worse.– If he wins with the fastest lap, he has to cut at least 12 more points off Norris's lead, so Norris would have to finish 4th or worse.– If Verstappen is 2nd, he needs Norris to finish 7th or worse, again depending on the fastest lap.– If Verstappen is 3rd, Norris would have to finish outside the points. In short: The clearest option is a Verstappen victory and a poor result for Norris. Any other scenario forces the Dutchman into a very precise combination of positions.

If Norris wants to be champion:– He only needs to finish immediately behind Verstappen, regardless of the result.– If Norris finishes 2nd and Verstappen wins, Norris remains champion.– Even with Verstappen setting the fastest lap, as long as Norris is 2nd, the Briton would retain the title.– Basically, Norris's fate is in his own hands:– Podium = title almost guaranteed.