Lewis Hamilton won the Qatar Grand Prix by a comfortable margin over title contender Max Verstappen, cutting his championship lead to to eight points with two races remaining.
Fernando Alonso finished a remarkable third, his first podium finish since the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix, behind his title rivals.
Hamilton won by 30 seconds, however the margin was wider than it could have been since Verstappen pitted late for new tyres. During the race, however, Verstappen has never been closer than six seconds.
In the context of the championship, Verstappen took the fastest lap bonus point after Hamilton held it for the majority of the race. Verstappen ensured Hamilton only lost six points from his championship lead, not eight.
After receiving a five-place grid penalty for failing to halt for yellow flags at the end of qualifying, Verstappen’s race was one of damage limitation. In the first four laps, Verstappen moved from eighth to second, but he never threatened Hamilton’s lead.
The opportunity for Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso, who began second and third, was created by Verstappen’s grid penalty. At the start, Hamilton led into Turn 1, and Gasly faded quickly, although Alonso stayed in contention by staying near the head of the pack.
To stay in third place, the Spaniard performed a great one-stop strategy. Alpine avoided the temptation to pit late in the race when Norris and both Williams drivers sustained punctures while attempting a similar strategy.
Alonso finished two seconds ahead of Sergio Perez of Red Bull, owing in part to a late Virtual Safety Car period that prevented Perez from taking advantage of his tyre advantage.
After suffering a puncture in the middle of the race, Valtteri Bottas did not finish. By the time he returned to the pits, his front wing had also been damaged, and he finished 14th.
Mercedes summoned Bottas in to retire the car at the finish of the race. This helped Red Bull to close the gap on Mercedes in the constructors’ championship to five points, ensuring that both title races are evenly matched heading into the penultimate race in Saudi Arabia on December 5.
Esteban Ocon finished fifth for Alpine, ahead of Lance Stroll of Aston Martin and Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari. Norris had been in fourth place until a late pit stop when McLaren discovered a puncture, which dropped him to ninth.
Vettel finished 10th, one place ahead of Gasly, who was unable to convert his front row start into a points finish.
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