Norris praised Piastri, saying "at some point he will get the better of me, as he is an incredible driver."

Pole position was crucial on the 58-lap circuit in Abu Dhabi, where overtaking is hard, and so it proved again as Verstappen joined the long list of race winners from pole since 2015.

Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari, ahead of fifth-placed George Russell (Mercedes) and Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) in sixth.

Verstappen made a clean start with Piastri overtaking Norris, while the slick Leclerc was soon behind the title-chasing Briton.

Norris changed tires on Lap 17, but was caught behind some traffic and had Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda ahead of him in third spot, which in turn allowed Leclerc to close on Norris.

Norris overtook Tsunoda on Lap 23, but went very wide and off track limits. Race stewards gave Tsunoda a five-second time penalty for zigzagging in front of Norris, who was cleared.

Tsunoda reacted angrily when informed he had moved more than once in front of Norris when defending his position.

Norris pitted again on Lap 41, with Verstappen overtaking Piastri moments later to take the lead. Piastri came in a lap later, but Norris still held the cards because both McLarens had covered an eventual second tire change for Verstappen.

The main threat for Norris was Leclerc, who was about four seconds behind him with 10 laps left.

"Is Charles catching him or not?" Verstappen asked his race engineer.

Leclerc couldn't get closer, meaning Norris could coast to the title.

Agencies Via Xinhua