Max Verstappen secured his fourth consecutive drivers’ world championship with a fifth place at the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday night, 23 November. Verstappen equalled Sebastian Vettel’s record at Red Bull. Meanwhile, George Russell had a perfect weekend for Mercedes, leading all 50 laps to take his second win of the season and the third of his career.
Russell’s margin of victory was 7.093 seconds ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton, who made a strong push in the final 20 laps but was unable to close the gap.
Mercedes dominated the weekend, sweeping all three practice sessions, securing pole position and taking the first two places on the podium. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finished third, completing the podium.
Verstappen’s fifth place, combined with Lando Norris’ sixth place, allowed him to extend his lead to an unassailable 64 points over Norris in the championship standings. This result sealed the title for Verstappen in the 22nd race of the season.
He became the third driver to win the World Drivers’ Championship in Las Vegas, joining Nelson Piquet (1981) and Keke Rosberg (1982), who both won their titles at the Caesars Palace Grand Prix.
It was a difficult night for Pierre Gasly, who suffered an engine failure on lap 16, ending his promising weekend after starting third on the grid. Alex Albon also faced a difficult race, forced to retire on lap 26 due to an engine problem, ending a challenging weekend for him and Williams Racing, which also saw Franco Colapinto go off track in Friday’s qualifying.
McLaren struggled with both cars from the start, hampered by a rear wing problem. This performance damaged their chances of winning the constructors’ championship, which will now be decided in the last two races. Ferrari have closed the gap to just 24 points from McLaren, while Red Bull, 53 points behind, are also in contention for the Qatar race.
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