Leclerc converted his pole position into a lead at the first corner and looked to take control of the race in the first stint, extending his lead to six seconds before Piastri made his pit stop on lap 15.

Leclerc followed him one lap later and theoretically should have easily had enough of a lead to maintain the lead until the end.

Leclerc said he felt he and Ferrari had not chosen the right set-up for the hard tyre as he had not completed any race simulation runs on Friday due to problems in practice and therefore struggled after his pit stop.

Piastri took his chance with fresh tyres and got closer to the Ferrari. On lap 20, he made a brave late attack on the inside of the first corner and took the lead.

It was a brilliant move and seemed to catch Leclerc somewhat off guard. He told Piastri in the green room before the podium that he had braked in his usual place and expected the McLaren to sail over the apex.

Although Piastri was now in the lead, Leclerc was not done yet and stuck stubbornly to the McLaren while Perez was hot on his heels, trying to find a gap.

The three drove together for many laps while Ferrari cheered Leclerc on over the radio.

On a few occasions, Leclerc was close enough to attempt an attack on the first corner, but Piastri always kept the inside line and had just enough power to keep the Ferrari at bay with an aggressive but clean defense.

In the final laps, Leclerc had problems with his rear tires and fell behind Piastri. The race was now won for the Australian.

Leclerc now had to fend off Perez and Sainz, who drove a lonely race for much of the race but closed in on the top three in the closing stages as Piastri measured his pace to keep Leclerc at bay.

The dramatic climax came when Perez attempted to overtake Leclerc at the start of lap 50, with two laps still to go.

Leclerc kept him at a distance in the first corner and Sainz was able to sneak past the Red Bull before the second corner.

Perez came through the corner better and was able to catch up with the Ferrari on the following straight.

The Red Bull had stuck its front wheel to Sainz’s rear wheel and the two touched, causing them to smash violently into the wall and both to retire from the race.

The accident moved George Russell’s Mercedes up to third place. The Briton had a quiet first stint but made up ground in the second and was able to overtake Verstappen and Norris to move into fifth place before the accident between Sainz and Perez.