The teams and drivers arrived at the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar for the FORMULA 1 QATAR AIRWAYS QATAR GRAND PRIX 2025 weekend. It’s the penultimate round of the season, in a championship that’s very much still a three-horse race. Before the main race on Sunday, additional points were available in the year’s final sprint race.
Oscar Piastri had a good reaction time from pole position, ensuring he wouldn’t face any threat in the first corner. Lando Norris had a better start than George Russell, running alongside the fellow Brit down the main straight. The two nearly collided as Russell moved towards the outside, dropping Norris back.
Yuki Tsunoda had a phenomenal start, squeezing his way between Fernando Alonso and Russell on the run down to turn one. He got by Alonso and tried to pressure Norris on the inside of the first corner, but couldn’t get by. Max Verstappen quickly appeared in Tsunoda’s mirrors, and Tsunoda bolted out of the way to let his teammate by. Tsunoda went on to get a five-second penalty for track limits violations on lap 14.
Now ahead of his teammate, Verstappen found his way within DRS range of Norris. With no DRS to Russell ahead, Norris appeared vulnerable to the Red Bull, but overtaking seemed difficult at the Lusail International Circuit, with no driver really looking eager to attempt it. Before long, Verstappen dropped outside of DRS range.
There was some action further back in a battle between Charles Leclerc, Oliver Bearman, and Liam Lawson over P12. Leclerc ran wide in the gravel strip that lines the outside of turn four, allowing Lawson to try going around the outside of the Ferrari in the following corner, but he was forced off the circuit by the Monegasque driver.
Kimi Antonelli was the only other source of entertainment in the sprint, overtaking Alonso after the Spaniard dipped his wheels in the gravel. But there was disappointment for the Mercedes rookie, who earned himself a five-second penalty for track limits, not benefiting from Tsunoda’s penalty ahead.
Oscar Piastri cruised across the line at the lead of the field, gaining two points over his teammate Lando Norris, who finished in P3 behind George Russell. Max Verstappen finished in P4, losing a point to Norris in the championship. Crucially, Norris could be crowned World Drivers’ Champion for the first time tomorrow if he wins the Qatar Grand Prix.
| 1 | L. Norris | 396 |  | |
| 2 | O. Piastri | 374 | -22 | |
| 3 | M. Verstappen | 371 | -25 | |
| 4 | G. Russell | 301 | -95 | |
| 5 | C. Leclerc | 226 | -170 | |
| 1 | McLaren | 770 |  | |
| 2 | Mercedes | 441 | -329 | |
| 3 | Red Bull | 400 | -370 | |
| 4 | Ferrari | 378 | -392 | |
| 5 | Williams | 122 | -648 | |
