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Max Verstappen narrowly wins at Emilia
Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen. Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

After struggling all weekend with pace, Max Verstappen was able to hold off Lando Norris on Sunday to win the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Italy for the third consecutive time.

Despite trailing by five seconds with 10 laps remaining, Norris was able to storm back but was ultimately unsuccessful partly because he was unable to get under the one-second threshold before the final DRS section on the final lap.

Finishing behind Norris was Charles Leclerc. The third-place finish helped Leclerc leapfrog Sergio Perez in the drivers championships standings. Perez struggled all weekend but was able to battle back from P11 to P8 and secure four points.

With the European portion of the F1 season just getting kicked off, the competition among Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren seems to be heating up, with Mercedes taking a backseat.

Despite Red Bull’s dominance in prior seasons, the team now looks vulnerable after finishing second in Miami and narrowly holding off Norris at Imola.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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