Max Verstappen did not play the disruptive role many expected him to in Formula 1's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix title decider, where he came up two points short of a fifth-successive world championship.
Expecting Verstappen to make McLaren's life harder on Sunday was not about assuming he would do anything nefarious.
It would have been totally legitimate to back the field up, as Lewis Hamilton did the same thing to Nico Rosberg in 2016.
But Hamilton's tactics that year achieved nothing and Verstappen was always sceptical about trying to do the same thing this year.
There was no backing up early on, no slowing down late to try to impact things or get in the McLarens' way - which even Oscar Piastri felt compelled to ask Verstappen about in the cooldown room after the race.
And Charles Leclerc, in prime position to help take the title away from Norris, said he was expecting Verstappen to "play some games" at the beginning or end of the race.
Asked by The Race why he didn't play games in the grand prix, Verstappen replied: "I had a lot of scenarios in my head, but then, I knew once the tyres [hards] Oscar had on the car, that would be quite difficult.
"We were probably a bit too quick up front. The others couldn't really follow that well. I think Charles drove his heart out to try and get onto that podium, so that was also impressive to see.
"But, of course, they went for a two-stop. I think even that made it more complicated because if you stay on a one-stop, backing the whole thing up is tough.
"And I think this new layout around here makes it even harder to do that compared to 2016 or whatever."
Those track changes - introduced in 2021 and primarily focused on removing the chicane before the hairpin and converting the sharp complex of corners at the end of the back straight with a long hairpin - have made overtaking easier, so it's harder to back up the pack without being overtaken.
Plus, back up the pack and someone in the midfield could pit and set off a cascade of pitstops from drivers who could then undercut you.
More from the F1 title decider
- Our verdict on the finale and Norris's championship
- Verstappen's angry reaction to Russell regret question
- Abu Dhabi winners and losers
- The questions Norris's F1 title answers - and those it doesn't
- Marko's Red Bull future in doubt for 2026
That explains Verstappen not doing it at the start. But Piastri's alternative strategy meant there was a window in which Red Bull could have responded to Piastri's sole stop, pitted Verstappen a second time, and had him emerged just in front - then backed up the McLarens in the final stint.
This would have come with the same problem as in the first stint, in that Verstappen wasn't sure it would work and he might be overtaken. But you'd think it would be worth a go with a title on the line.
Instead, that window quickly closed, so any second stop would have put Verstappen behind Piastri anyway - and he focused on closing out a commanding win instead.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies explained that "we didn't feel it was the right option for us", as it would not have given Verstappen an advantage in any scenario.
"We chose to stay out to maximise the advantage we had and to concentrate on winning the race," Mekies added.
"So we did discuss certain options, but we stuck to our plan."
He paid tribute to McLaren's choice to diverge its drivers' tyre strategies as "quite clever", as it limited Red Bull's options to play games.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said on that matter: "With the two McLarens starting with split tyres, it would have made any attempt to control the race a bit more difficult.
"So I'm not necessarily that surprised it didn't happen, and I think it's also a good thing that it didn't happen."
