Can Verstappen still win the title? The scenarios with two races left

Starting from second place on the grid, the Dutchman took the lead into Turn 1, and did not look back after in Las Vegas.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri originally finished second and fourth during the last race, but were disqualified for skid wear issues.

As a result, both Piastri and Verstappen are now 24 points behind Norris in the drivers' standings with two Grands Prix and a Sprint to go.

This does not mean Verstappen's fate is in his own hands. Should Norris finish second behind the Dutchman in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, and also in the remaining Sprint in Losail, he would still win the title by two points.

Should Norris finish third in one of the Grands Prix, then Verstappen would be able to clinch his fifth title in Abu Dhabi.

If Verstappen wins the remaining two races, he would also have the tiebreaker over the British driver should they finish on equal points.

However, if Verstappen scores two points fewer than Norris over the course of the Qatar GP weekend, the Dutchman will be mathematically eliminated from title contention in Abu Dhabi.

The most striking case is the 2007 season, when Kimi Räikkönen in a Ferrari was third in the standings, 17 points behind rookie Lewis Hamilton and also behind Fernando Alonso, with just two races to go.

At that time, the old points system awarded a maximum of only ten points for a win. Räikkönen pulled off a historic comeback, winning the last two races while Hamilton faltered, making a surprising error in China by getting stuck at the pit entry and encountering technical problems in Brazil.

Räikkönen ultimately won the championship by a single point over Hamilton and Alonso, who finished level on points.

In 2010, the year Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull won their first world championship, the German started the final race in Abu Dhabi third in the standings, behind Fernando Alonso in a Ferrari and teammate Mark Webber.

On the eve of the race, Alonso led Webber by 8 points and Vettel by 15, and his strategy focused on keeping the Australian in check.

However, Alonso got stuck behind Vitaly Petrov’s Renault and was unable to pass, remaining trapped in traffic until the checkered flag. Vettel took full advantage, winning both the race and the championship, overtaking both rivals in the process.