Max Verstappen secured the Formula One title for the third straight year on Saturday.
Verstappen finished second in the sprint race at the Qatar Grad Prix while his teammate Sergio Perez, the only driver who could catch him in the standings, crashed out after being struck by Esteban Ocon’s Alpine.
Rookie Oscar Piastri won the sprint for McLaren.
The title race was all but over long before Verstappen made sure of it Saturday. His run of 10 straight wins, an all-time F1 record, from May to September left him far ahead in the standings.
Even so, Perez needed to finish in the top three places to keep the title officially open for another day, with the main race on Sunday, but started eighth and dropped to 11th before colliding with Alpine's Ocon on lap 11.
The Red Bull was then stuck in the gravel, with Perez stepping out.
That meant Verstappen, who was running in third place at the time, was champion for the third year in a row no matter where he finished.
The 26-year-old Dutch driver will start on pole position for Sunday's race, chasing his 14th win in 17 grands prix.
Verstappen's championship parade will start at Sunday's 57-lap Grand Prix in Qatar.
"Max, you are a three-time world champion," roared Red Bull's team principal Christian Horner over the radio. "That is unbelievable. It has been an incredible year for you."
Verstappen replied: "Unbelievable, guys. I don't know what to say. Thank you for giving me such a good car. It has been a pleasure to be able to achieve something like this. I cannot thank you enough."
After lapping up the adulation of his team, Verstappen said: "It is a fantastic feeling, and it has been an incredible year. I am super-proud of the team. It has been so enjoyable to be a part of that group of people. To be a three-time world champion is incredible.
"We will keep on pushing and try to do the best we can. Today was an exciting race, but it was good and fun out there and I am incredibly happy at the moment."
Asked if he feels more world championships are possible, the Dutch driver added: "We will see what happens. I am enjoying the moment and hopefully we will keep this momentum going for a while."
The 26-year-old Dutch driver also became the second youngest triple world champion after now-retired German Sebastian Vettel, who secured the third of his four crowns with Red Bull in 2012 at the age of 25.
Piastri's Saturday success ended Red Bull's domination of the sprints this season.
The Australian rookie's team mate Lando Norris finished third with Mercedes' George Russell fourth and team mate Lewis Hamilton fifth after starting 12th and cashing in on the collisions ahead of him.
Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were sixth and seventh with Williams' Alex Albon taking the final point of the evening.
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'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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Building boom turning to bust as Turkey's economy slows
Deep in a provincial region of northwestern Turkey, it looks like a mirage - hundreds of luxury houses built in neat rows, their pointed towers somewhere between French chateau and Disney castle.
Meant to provide luxurious accommodations for foreign buyers, the houses are however standing empty in what is anything but a fairytale for their investors.
The ambitious development has been hit by regional turmoil as well as the slump in the Turkish construction industry - a key sector - as the country's economy heads towards what could be a hard landing in an intensifying downturn.
After a long period of solid growth, Turkey's economy contracted 1.1 per cent in the third quarter, and many economists expect it will enter into recession this year.
The country has been hit by high inflation and a currency crisis in August. The lira lost 28 per cent of its value against the dollar in 2018 and markets are still unconvinced by the readiness of the government under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to tackle underlying economic issues.
The villas close to the town centre of Mudurnu in the Bolu region are intended to resemble European architecture and are part of the Sarot Group's Burj Al Babas project.
But the development of 732 villas and a shopping centre - which began in 2014 - is now in limbo as Sarot Group has sought bankruptcy protection.
It is one of hundreds of Turkish companies that have done so as they seek cover from creditors and to restructure their debts.
