Verstappen, starting from the first position, led the race at the beginning, while Fernando Alonso from Aston Martin moved past Perez to take second place.
Perez managed to stay in third place ahead of Norris, with Oscar Piastri from McLaren in fifth place. George Russell from Mercedes, Nico Hulkenberg from Haas, and the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz followed behind. Leclerc and Sainz nearly touched each other at Turn 1. Leclerc then passed Hulkenberg towards the end of the first lap.
Verstappen quickly gained a lead of more than 2 seconds while Perez chased Alonso for second place.
Further back, Sainz and Lance Stroll from Aston Martin overtook Hulkenberg.
Perez passed Alonso to take back second place on lap five. Norris overtook Alonso to claim third place, while Leclerc passed Russell for sixth place on lap 9.
Two laps later, Leclerc moved up to fifth place by passing Piastri. Alonso was the first of the leaders to pit for hard tires on lap 12.
Verstappen and Perez also pitted for hard tires, and Norris briefly led the race with Leclerc close behind.
Verstappen passed Leclerc for second place on lap 16, while Perez had trouble getting past Sainz. Verstappen regained the lead on lap 19 by passing Norris at the Turn 14 hairpin.
Valtteri Bottas’s Sauber broke down on lap 21, leading to a virtual safety car. Leclerc took advantage of this to make a pitstop. However, McLaren missed the chance to bring Norris in immediately. The Sauber appeared to be stuck in gear, causing delays.
This led to a full safety car, and Verstappen pitted for fresh tires while Alonso also pitted for soft tires.
During the restart, Stroll collided with Ricciardo’s RB, damaging its floor. Stroll received a 10-second penalty, and Ricciardo retired a few laps later.
The race resumed on lap 27 with Verstappen in the lead, followed by Norris, Leclerc, Perez, Sainz, Alonso, Russell, and Piastri. Alonso passed Sainz for fifth place on the back straight.
Yuki Tsunoda’s RB was out of the race after a collision with Kevin Magnussen’s Haas, leading to another safety car. Magnussen received a penalty for causing the collision.
Verstappen maintained his lead and won the race, followed by Norris and Perez. Alonso finished seventh, claiming the extra point for the fastest lap. Hamilton, who started 18th, fought his way into the points, finishing in ninth place.
