Qatar's Short Race and Main Event Grid Setting: Live Coverage
Opening Notes
The author will be here shortly to guide you through today's short race (14:00 GMT) and grid-setting session (6pm).
Current Events
Formation Lap Time
The warm-up lap has started.
Track Information
We have nineteen laps of the longest circuit in F1, David Croft reminds us.
Final Moments
The final countdown is on.
Racer Positions
An advantage in Verstappen's favour: his teammate Tsunoda is ahead of him by one place. He is unlikely to interfere with Red Bull's lead driver.
Interview Updates
Sky's internal discussion now: Gary Neville is at the Mercedes team.
The analyst is jumping ahead to 2026, speaking with the engineer about his stepping up to Aston Martin team principal.
Grid Details
There are only sixteen vehicles on the grid. This followed another bad qualifying for Lewis Hamilton: after coming twentieth and final in Las Vegas, resulting in an eighth position in the main race, he failed to make it out of the first qualifying segment once more on Friday. The team have consequently adjusted to his car configuration and so he begins from the starting area.
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the same position.
Driver Comments
"We'll use the learning for the next day," states Isack Hadjar, 11th on the grid. Expect a lot of that.
Team Standings
The focus isn't solely on the individual championship: McLaren have dominated the team championship but the team, with a forty-point advantage over Red Bull, are aiming to seal second place this weekend. Russell can assist in this goal from the front row, and Kimi Antonelli will begin immediately after Verstappen.
Past Performance
Piastri was victorious then – as he managed the previous season, too. McLaren's Australian is going for a hat-trick.
Short Race Importance
Right, just over 20 minutes remaining till the sprint race begins. Unless something goes wrong, its main importance is as a preview of future events, instead of significant in its own right, with just eight championship points available to the victor. Mind you, second place here was sufficient for the driver to become champion two years ago.
Max Verstappen wins the championship following his teammate's accident of Qatar GP sprint race.
