Qatar GP
US GP
Amid this season of Max Verstappen domination, there are still moments when the chasers get a glimpse. Ferrari of course finally broke Red Bull’s domination at Singapore before Verstappen bounced back harder than ever to win in Suzuka. In Qatar and the US, it was the respective turns of McLaren and Mercedes to apply some stress to the hitherto dominant combo.
“I think it’s partly a reflection of how little development we’ve put on the car of late,” said Red Bull’s Christian Horner in Austin.
“We’ve pretty much switched it off and are now full on with next year’s car.” Mercedes in particular is still developing hard.
Furthermore, the sprint format – which tends to open up greater randomisation – meant Red Bull could not take Qatar and Austin for granted.
Finishing second in Qatar’s Saturday sprint race was a somewhat underwhelming way for Verstappen to have clinched his third world championship, but that’s just the way the maths and calendar combined. His only mathematical rival, team-mate Sergio Pérez, was taken out of the sprint race, squeezed between an Alpine and a Haas. That he should be racing such cars in a Red Bull just underlined how his early season title challenge had so badly fallen away. That Saturday sprint in Qatar was significant for another milestone: Oscar Piastri won an F1 race for the first time.
The rookie McLaren driver had started from pole and led all the way. The medium compound tyres on which he, Lando Norris
