McLaren howler a gift for Verstappen: Qatar GP winners and losers
Who caught the eye and who had a disaster at the F1 2025 Qatar Grand Prix?
Max Verstappen capitalised on a major McLaren fumble to take a three-way title fight right down to the wire.
Here are our biggest winners and losers from the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix…
Loser - McLaren
If McLaren go on to lose this year’s drivers’ world championship, they will only have themselves to blame.
Choosing not to pit their drivers when the rest of the field came in during an early Safety Car threw away a likely 1-2 finish and opened the door to Verstappen in the title race.
Oscar Piastri in particular will feel rightly aggrieved after missing out on a win he would have deserved after a brilliant performance all weekend.
That's the second weekend on the trot McLaren have haemorrhaged points to Verstappen through their own mistakes.
Winner - Max Verstappen
McLaren’s loss was Verstappen’s gain and he gobbled up the gift with both hands to produce a perfectly-executed race and seal a massive victory.
With McLaren sacrificing track position to Verstappen, the four-time world champion controlled proceedings and capitalised on the open goal he was handed to take his seventh win of the season.
Verstappen now unexpectedly finds himself right in the middle of a three-way championship showdown in Abu Dhabi and just 13 points shy of becoming a five-time world champion.
Loser - Ferrari
Ferrari reached an all-time low in 2025 with a truly wretched weekend in Qatar. The SF-25 looked a real handful to drive, with both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton struggling to keep their cars on the track.
Hamilton’s miserable maiden year in red continued with early eliminations in both sprint qualifying and regular qualifying which left him with too much to do in the races.
After a pointless sprint race, Ferrari’s first non-score in the format since the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, an anonymous run to eighth for Leclerc was all that could be salvaged on a nightmare weekend that leaves the team locked in a disappointing fourth in the constructors’ championship.
Winner - Carlos Sainz and Williams
Somewhat overshadowed by the championship drama, Carlos Sainz drove a superb race and benefited from McLaren’s error to take an unlikely second podium of the season for Williams.
Sainz’s second third place finish of 2025 seals fifth place in the constructors’ championship for Williams, who celebrate their best result in F1 since 2017.
Loser - Nico Hulkenberg
Nico Hulkenberg’s hopes of scoring crucial points for Sauber were wrecked by a race-ending collision with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly on Lap 7.
The German veteran had been running 10th and was looking to make a move on Gasly for ninth when the pair made contact on the outside of Turn 1, with Hulkenberg coming off worse as he spun off into the gravel.
Hulkenberg’s second retirement in four races has hurt Sauber’s hopes of catching eighth-placed Haas in the constructors’ standings
Winner - Mercedes
Despite mistakes from both Kimi Antonelli and George Russell costing Mercedes a better result, their fifth and sixth places were enough to all-but confirm second place in the constructors’ - a marked improvement on 2024.
Loser - Pierre Gasly
Gasly was a loser in Qatar, having blown his chances of a rare top-10 finish for Alpine by getting tangled up with Hulkenberg.
The Frenchman produced a brilliant performance in qualifying to reach Q3 and secure a P9 starting slot, but all his hard work was undone in the early stages of Sunday’s grand prix.
Winner - Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso capped off a strong weekend with his second points finish in as many days as he claimed best of the midfield runners in seventh for Aston Martin.
Alonso was running sixth for much of the race until a huge spin saw him lose positions to Russell and Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar, but a puncture for the latter gave the Spaniard a place back.
Loser - Haas
Oliver Bearman was running inside the points before an unsafe release and subsequent 10-second stop/go penalty saw his hopes of a sixth consecutive points finish go begging. Teammate Esteban Ocon also got a penalty for a false start on his way to 15th, compounding a miserable evening for Haas.
Winner - Liam Lawson
Liam Lawson capitalised on his teammate’s misfortune as he battled his way into the top-10 with a solid drive to ninth and two points that keep Racing Bulls ahead of Aston Martin.
Lawson also beat Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda, which will do the Kiwi’s hopes of securing his future on the F1 grid next season absolutely no harm.
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