Under what conditions will Verstappen win the title in Las Vegas?
Max Verstappen’s incredible victory at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix has put him on the brink of a fourth consecutive Formula 1 title.
With the win, Verstappen extended his points gap to Lando Norris to 62 ahead of the trio of races in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
A maximum of 26 points are awarded for each grand prix, 25 for victory and one for fastest lap. Considering that the winner of the sprint race in Qatar will also be awarded 8 points, there are 86 points left for this season.
There is a simple possibility for the Las Vegas Grand Prix: if Verstappen finishes ahead of Norris, he will be world champion. To be crowned champion here, Verstappen needs to have a points gap of 60 points or more heading into Qatar.
Norris needs to edge Verstappen by three points to keep the championship alive before Qatar.
In F1 races, points are distributed as follows: 25-18-15-12-10-8-6-4-2-1. In sprint races, points are distributed as follows: 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.
Verstappen secured the title if points are tied after the final race, as he took his eighth victory of the year in Brazil. So if points are tied after the final race, Verstappen will be crowned champion with more wins.
Verstappen will also be crowned champion regardless of Norris’ results if he collects 24 points in the remaining three races.
That means Verstappen can still win the title even if he finishes sixth in the remaining three races and does not score any points in the Qatar sprint.
To put it briefly, the Dutch driver has not finished any F1 race outside the top six this year.
Verstappen will lead the championship heading into the final race, even if he fails to finish the next two races. If Norris wins both races and takes both fastest lap points and the sprint victory, then the gap between the two will be just two points heading into Abu Dhabi.
Verstappen will be champion in Las Vegas if:
Verstappen finishes ahead of Norris
If Norris finishes second and Verstappen finishes third with fastest lap If
Norris finishes third and Verstappen finishes fourth with fastest lap If
Norris finishes fourth and Verstappen finishes fifth If
Norris finishes fifth and Verstappen finishes sixth If Norris finishes sixth and
Verstappen finishes seventh If
Norris finishes seventh and Verstappen finishes eighth
If Norris finishes eighth and Verstappen finishes ninth
Norris finishes ninth, tenth or out of the points table
