It was only a matter of time but Max Verstappen is officially four-time world champion this time. The Dutchman, by finishing 5th in this Grand Prix, secured the title by beating his rival Lando Norris.
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The Red Bull driver joins a very closed circle of world champions titled four or more times. He equals Alain Prost and his predecessor at Red Bull Sebastian Vettel. All that remains before him is Fangio and his titles and the record holders Schumacher and Hamilton and their 7 world titles.
As always, Las Vegas pulled out all the stops to impress spectators and viewers. This is evidenced by the return of the globe which was unanimously acclaimed last year, here in the colors of Chrome, sponsor of McLaren F1.
Qualifying was hectic this year in Vegas. Indeed, if Q1 marked a new elimination in Q1 for Sergio Pérez, it was the violent crash of rookie Colapinto which left its mark on the session. The Argentinian driver violently hit the wall receiving a total of 50 G, or 50 times his body weight during deceleration. The Williams driver fortunately emerged unscathed.
But the qualifying feat is to the credit of Pierre Gasly. The Frenchman once again extracted the best from his car by placing his Alpine in 3rd place on the grid just behind the untouchable Russell and Sainz. A feat without follow-up unfortunately for the Norman who will be the victim of a mechanical problem the next day forcing him to abandon.
The radio heated up on the red sides! If the accounting operation is satisfactory by taking back big points from Red Bull and Ferrari, the good understanding could no longer be required following the non-compliance with instructions from Carlos Sainz.
The Spanish driver was asked not to attack Leclerc but, faster at the moment, still overtook the Monegasque to conquer a new podium, he who will be far from this fight next year at Williams. Which was not to the taste of Leclerc who made it clear on the radio.
Finally, how can we not conclude on those who were overshadowed by events but who achieved a superb performance? I named Russell and Mercedes! Indeed, if Hamilton had not failed in qualifying it would undoubtedly have been a complete failure for the German team which made a very strong impression.
Russell established himself as boss after winning pole under Carlos Sainz’s nose. As for Sir Lewis, he had a sensational race from 10th to 2nd place to deliver Mercedes’ 60th double by being elected driver of the day. Solid !
The next Grand Prix will take place next week at Losail, Qatar.
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