A fantastic Grand Prix. Great driving. Good overtakes with even better defending. Las Vegas did not disappoint and excelled as a spectacular event.

As the checkered flag was waved the results showed a second win for Max Verstappen at this circuit but with a diminished chance of winning his fifth World Drivers’ Championship. With Lando Norris scoring eighteen points for second place and only two race weekends remaining, the points gap looked too large to overcome. Still possible but very unlikely.

Then came the FIA scrutineers.

BEFORE THE FIA SCRUTINEERS.

The start to finish graphic looked like this-

That result would have left Max fifteen points behind Oscar Piastri and forty two points behind Lando Norris.

Point differences-

That result would have left Lando with one hand almost on the World Drivers’ Championship Trophy.

AFTER THE FIA SCRUTINEERS.

Both McLaren cars disqualified. Excessive plank abrasion was the reason for the disqualification. This is not the first this year as Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) and Nico Hulkenberg (Kick Sauber) have also been disqualified at the China and Bahrain GPs respectively.

The grid to flag graphic-

The points difference to Lando are now-

We now have Max equal with Oscar and both twenty four points adrift of Lando. This is still a large deficit with only the two remaining race weekends. The two GPs and Sprint provide fifty eight winning points but only fifteen points between first and second positions.

The World Drivers’ Championship point race is now-

It is hopefully going to be a very exciting conclusion to what has been an entertaining season of Formula 1.

Who knows, Max Verstappen may yet surprise us and retain that number one for next year.

Here’s looking forward to the last two race weekends.