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Photo: RacePictures.

Verstappen is only one McLaren blunder away from his fifth title

17:00, 01 Dec

byTim Kraaij

After the Qatar Grand Prix, Max Verstappen is just one slice of luck away from wrapping up his fifth world title. Even a seemingly hopeless position in Qatar ended up breaking his way.

After qualifying for the GP in Qatar, the mood was gloomy. Although a pole position for Oscar Piastri was good news for the world title fight, a third place for Max Verstappen wasn’t enough to truly have hope for the result the Dutchman needed.

Although Verstappen saw the gap to Lando Norris shrink dramatically due to the disqualification of both McLarens in Las Vegas, the 24-point deficit was still large enough that Verstappen could already be eliminated from title contention in Qatar. After qualifying behind both McLarens, the title fight seemed over for Max.

But 24 hours later, the mood in the paddock had completely flipped. After yet another major blunder from McLaren, it was Verstappen who seized the victory and suddenly sits second in the championship. The gap to Norris is now just 12 points, leaving everything to fight for in Abu Dhabi.

F1 title fight with three drivers

The hype was palpable in the paddock. For the first time since 2010, there are still three contenders for the world title going into the final race. Fifteen years ago, those were Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel, and mathematically even Lewis Hamilton.

In 2025, the situation is a bit different. McLaren still holds the advantage. Not only do they have two irons in the fire, they also have Norris leading with a solid margin over second and third place. Norris “only” needs to finish third to become world champion for the first time.

So Norris doesn’t even need to react to Verstappen or Piastri in Abu Dhabi and can completely run his own weekend. Given how good the McLaren car is, that should normally always be enough for P3. This season, when he saw the checkered flag, Norris failed to finish on the podium only three times.

Max Verstappen still has a realistic shot at the world title - Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

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“2010 was better for us because we had two drivers in the championship month, and Ferrari focused on Vettel — which was correct because he had a lot of fun out. McLaren has just a focus on Max, but focusing on Max is not so easy.” Marko said after the GP in Qatar.

For Verstappen and Red Bull, it’s still a scenario where everything is there to be won. No one expected Max to stay in the title fight this long. Within the team, they continue to go from weekend to weekend and maximize everything. Red Bull has no influence over what the competition does.

Meanwhile, things keep going wrong at McLaren, where the first signs of championship pressure seem to be emerging. After the blunder in Las Vegas came the strategic misstep in Qatar. Another mistake by the team or the drivers in Abu Dhabi could easily result in not a McLaren driver, but Verstappen walking away with his fifth title.

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