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F1 set for final-race showdown as Verstappen exploits McLaren blunder | The Express Tribune
The Red Bull driver made an immediate pit stop during an early safety car intervention
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen made it back-to-back GP wins after his early pit stop during a safety car period proved a crucial tactical move. Photo: REUTERS
DOHA:
The three-way F1 title fight will go down to the last race of the season after Max Verstappen took full advantage of a McLaren blunder to win the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Red Bull driver made an immediate pit stop during an early safety car intervention, when McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris stayed out, and he capitalised by driving with cool precision to triumph in convincing style.
His win lifted him into second place in the title race with 396 points, 12 behind championship leader Norris, who finished fourth.
Pole-sitter Piastri slipped to third in the standings but trimmed his deficit to Norris to 16 points with one race remaining in Abu Dhabi next Sunday, where Verstappen has won four times in the last five years.
“It’s all possible,” said Verstappen, who is chasing a fifth successive world title.
Britain’s Norris still has his nose in front heading to Abu Dhabi and will take the title with a podium finish, no matter what his rivals do.
Dutchman Verstappen came home 7.995 seconds ahead of Piastri with Carlos Sainz third for Williams, ahead of Norris and the Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell.
It was Verstappen’s seventh win of the season, his third in succession in Qatar and 70th of his career.
“That was an incredible race for us,” said Verstappen, who had written off his title hopes at the end of August before embarking on a sequence of results that turned a 104-point deficit to Piastri into a four-point advantage.
Piastri ‘speechless’
“We made the right call as a team to box under the safety car and it was scrappy, but we got there in the end.”
Red Bull’s race strategist Hannah Schmitz joined Verstappen on the podium to mark her part in his success.
Australia’s Piastri, who had a potential win taken from him by poor decisions, said: “I’m speechless. I have no words.
“Clearly we didn’t get it right tonight. I drove the best race I could and there was nothing left out there.
“In hindsight it’s pretty obvious what we should have done, but we’ll discuss it as a team. It’s obviously tough to swallow.”
At lights out Piastri surged clear with a near-perfect start from pole.
Behind him, Verstappen swooped to pass Norris round the outside of Turn One.
On lap seven Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg tagged Pierre Gasly’s Alpine and spun off, prompting a safety car.
Verstappen pitted immediately from second for fresh mediums, but the McLaren pair stayed out — effectively missing out on a “free stop” in a race where two stops were mandatory because of a 25-lap limit for each set of tyres.
“We should have followed him in, no? If we knew the car in front was staying out?” asked Norris on team radio.
Norris would have won his maiden F1 crown with victory in Qatar.
Tense finale
The safety car period ended on lap 11 with Piastri surging clear again from Norris.
However, as the only team not to have stopped, they faced two mandatory stops while the rest required only one.
The Australian pitted on lap 24 and re-joined fifth before Norris made his first stop, handing the lead to Verstappen.
Verstappen led by 18 seconds before he pitted again for hards, on lap 32, the Dutchman returning third behind the two McLarens knowing they both had a further stop to make.
Unable to shake off Verstappen, the McLaren pair pitted on laps 43 and 45, hoping their new hard rubber would allow them to chase him down, but Piastri rejoined second 15 seconds adrift and Norris returned fifth behind Sainz and Antonelli.
It meant a tense finale for the McLaren pair, who had the fastest cars in the race and had started with a front-row lockout.
But they ultimately threw it away with a basic strategy error that ensured the drivers’ title race goes down to the wire.
After a massive night of high-flying moments and title changes on Night 1, the WrestleMania 42 action continues on Night 2 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Two of the biggest superstars on the roster, literally, square off in the first match of the night, as “The Ruler” Oba Femi attempts to slay “The Beast” Brock Lesnar. Also on the card is a six-man ladder match for the men’s Intercontinental Championship, and a pair of singles matches for the United States Championship and the WWE Women’s Championship.
In the main event, CM Punk puts the World Heavyweight Championship on the line against Roman Reigns.
Follow along with every moment of WrestleMania Night 2.
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Chuck Schumer calls on FIFA to cover $150 NJ Transit fares for World Cup fans heading to MetLife Stadium
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Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has called for FIFA to cover the full rail cost for New Yorkers attending the World Cup, as NJ Transit train ticket prices are set for $150 to get to MetLife Stadium for matches.
Schumer released a statement on Sunday, calling on FIFA to pay the full fair, which is astronomically higher than the regular cost to travel from Penn Station to the Meadowlands, while understanding that “FIFA is set to rake in approximately $11 billion in revenue off the tournament while New York fans are being hit with $150 NJ Transit round-trip tickets to get to the game.”
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will host eight matches during the World Cup, including the final on July 19. The usual price is $12.90 for the Meadowlands train from Penn Station, but it will rise to $150 beginning June 13 and ending July 19. There will also be shuttles available worth $80.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, during a news conference following the weekly Senate Democrat policy luncheon at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
NJ Transit CEO Kirs Kolluri defended the fare hikes on Friday, saying the ultimate cost to the company shouldn’t burden New Jersey commuters.
“It is an exciting moment for New Jersey to showcase New Jersey’s diversity as well as its economic standing in the country and in the world. Equally important, (Gov. Mikie Sherrill) has said that New Jersey commuters cannot and will not subsidize the movement of fans going to the game, because that would not be fair,” Kolluri said, reiterating that the tournament will cost NJ Transit $48 million.
Penn Station is also scheduled to be partially closed for up to four hours before each World Cup match, which will obviously disrupt regular commuters and travelers eight times during the tournament.
Schumer argues it’s unfair for New Yorkers to have to deal with the price hike, especially considering FIFA is eliminating parking at MetLife Stadium. Also, parking at nearby American Dream mall is approximately $225, while walking access is being prohibited as well.
In turn, mass transit is “effectively the only way in or out of the stadium on match days,” Schumer’s statement read. But Schumer isn’t lambasting NJ Transit — he understands the financials the company has to deal with.
It’s FIFA he’s pointing the finger at for not helping with the cost.
“The total NJ Transit operation to move fans to and from MetLife is projected to cost $62 million, with approximately $11 million dedicated to security alone. The federal government is contributing $10.6 million and the NY/NJ Host Committee is contributing just over $3 million, leaving NJ Transit to foot a $48 million bill with zero financial contribution from FIFA.
“Meanwhile, FIFA has told other host cities they can offer fans mass rail for as little as $2.50 round trip, a fraction of what New York fans are being charged.”
A general view of MetLife Stadium and the Meadowlands Train Station is seen from a NJ Transit train before the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 semi-final match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 9, 2025. (Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Schumer added that, “Charging more than eleven times the normal fare for a train ride is a ripoff, plain and simple.”
FIFA’s budgeted revenue for the 2023 to 2026 cycle is approximately $11 billion, which marks a 71% increase over the previous cycle. It also marks the most lucrative World Cup in the tournament’s history.
Schumer’s statement also pointed out ticket prices for match-goers are around $700 for the group stage, and the final at MetLife Stadium is as high as $10,000 to get into the door under FIFA’s dynamic pricing model.
“We are carrying more fans, more riders, and more disruption than any other region in this tournament,” Schumer added. “FIFA needs to step up accordingly. Past practice does not cut it when you are eliminating parking, shutting down Penn Station, and forcing every fan onto one transit system. FIFA should cover the ride, not stick New York fans with the bill.”
FIFA may not have historically contributed to public transportation costs in previous tournaments, but Schumer argues New York and New Jersey isn’t every other host region. It’s the most densely populated area in the country, and it will be host to eight matches.
Kolluri also noted that, if the regular $12.90 fare were to stay in place, the $48 million bill for NJ Transit would be subsidized for commuters by 92%.
“No one that I have spoken to thinks that’s fair or reasonable. Commuters in New Jersey should not carry the cost years into the future for a wonderful event, no doubt. But the fans going to the games should burden the cost. That’s all we’re trying to say,” Kolluri said.
NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri and Alex Lasry, CEO of the 2026 FIFA World Cup New York New Jersey Host Committee, speak during a press briefing on the regional mobility plan for the World Cup in Newark, New Jersey, on April 17, 2026. (Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images)
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With the plan now officially in place, FIFA World Cup COO Heimo Schirgi issued the following statement to Fox News Digital:
“Ever since the host city agreements were signed in 2018, FIFA has worked in collaboration with the Host Committees and their partners to develop a transportation plan that provides efficient and accessible mass transit options for ticketed fans attending the eight matches at NY NJ Stadium. The goal is to minimize congestion, reduce reliance on private vehicles, and ensure the fan experience is positive and memorable, defined by the action on pitch, not delays on the roads.
“The NJ Transit current pricing model will have a chilling effect. Elevated fares inevitably push fans toward alternative transportation options. This increases concerns of congestion, late arrivals, and creates broader ripple effects that ultimately diminish the economic benefit and lasting legacy the entire region stands to gain from hosting the World Cup.”
Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.
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Former Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch is facing two misdemeanor charges after he was arrested in Athens early Sunday. The arrest of the star receiver comes just days before he is projected to be a second-round pick in this week’s NFL Draft.
Branch, who turned 22 just last month, was arrested by the Athens-Clarke County Police Department and booked into the Athens-Clarke County Jail just before 1:30 a.m. on two charges.
Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch celebrates with wide receiver Colbie Young after scoring a touchdown during the Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff quarterfinals at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La., on Jan. 1, 2026. Ole Miss defeated Georgia 39-34. (IMAGN)
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The former Bulldogs star was charged with obstructing public sidewalks/streets – prowling and obstruction of a law enforcement officer. He was released after more than two hours in jail after posting $39 in bonds.
ESPN reported that Branch attended Georgia’s spring game on Saturday. His brother, Zion Branch, is a safety for the team after both transferred there in 2025.
Branch transferred after two seasons at Southern California and immediately became quarterback Gunner Stockton’s favorite target. He finished the season with a team-high 811 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch runs during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., on Feb. 28, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
GEORGIA FOOTBALL PLAYERS ARRESTED FOR SHOPLIFTING AHEAD OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF
In January, he announced his plans to declare for the draft.
“DAWG NATION, thank you for your unwavering support. You welcomed me with open arms. Having the opportunity to play between the hedges and winning the SEC Championship is a story only God could’ve written, and for that, I am forever grateful,” he wrote in a statement shared on social media.
Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Zachariah Branch celebrates after a touchdown catch against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the second quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., on Nov. 28, 2025. (Brett Davis/Imagn Images)
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Branch’s status as a projected second-round pick was bolstered after an impressive showing at the combine, where he clocked a 4.35 40-yard dash.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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