Title contender Oscar Piastri starts the Qatar GP Sprint Race from his first pole position since Zandvoort as he bids to close the gap to Lando Norris with just one Sprint and two grands prix to go
Meanwhile, it is going to be a fairly thin grid getting away for this Sprint with four drivers electing to start from the pit-lane
One of them is Lewis Hamilton, whose dreary end to his first season with Ferrari continued in qualifying en route to just 18th.
He is joined on the sidelines off the lights by Lance Stroll's Aston Martin, plus the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto
In fourth, Fernando Alonso impressed again for Aston Martin, while Yuki Tsunoda pulled a much. needed top five out of the bag as he fights for his F1 future
With Verstappen in sixth, it is the first time the Dutchman has been out-qualified by a team-mate since last year's Azerbaijan GP..
Other standouts were Sainz in eighth and Albon in tenth with the Williams' both going well under the floodlights
Elsewhere, George Russell remains a persistent thorn in the side of this title battle and he is again up there in the mix in second place.
Norris has set himself a direct target to beat Russell to the first corner otherwise he fears there will be no more chances to get by the Mercedes to the flag
So, Piastri is on pole, so he is well placed to end his recent Sprint hoodoo with ended with DNFs in the two most recent rapid races in Austin and São Paulo.
Still, he does have some good memories from Qatar - he was a winner in the Sprint Race here during his rookie season
| 2025 F1 Qatar Grand Prix - Sprint Race Starting Grid | |||
| Pos | Driver | Nat. | Team |
| 1 | Oscar Piastri | AUS | McLaren F1 Team |
| 2 | George Russell | GBR | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team |
| 3 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren F1 Team |
| 4 | Fernando Alonso | ESP | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team |
| 5 | Yuki Tsunoda | JPN | Oracle Red Bull Racing |
| 6 | Max Verstappen | NED | Oracle Red Bull Racing |
| 7 | Kimi Antonelli | ITA | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz | ESP | Atlassian Williams Racing |
| 9 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Scuderia Ferrari HP |
| 10 | Alex Albon | THA | Atlassian Williams Racing |
| 11 | Isack Hadjar | FRA | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team |
| 12 | Oliver Bearman | GBR | MoneyGram Haas F1 Team |
| 13 | Gabriel Bortoleto | BRA | Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber |
| 14 | Nico Hulkenberg | GER | Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber |
| 15 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | MoneyGram Haas F1 Team |
| 16 | Liam Lawson | NZL | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team |
| PL | Lance Stroll | CAN | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team |
| PL | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Scuderia Ferrari HP |
| PL | Pierre Gasly | FRA | BWT Alpine F1 Team |
| PL | Franco Colapinto | ARG | BWT Alpine F1 Team |
For that to happen on Sunday, then Norris will probably need a perfect eight points from Saturday but in the run up to this race, it appears the advantage is with Piastri.
The Aussie has looked back to his best around the fast, flowing and smooth Lusail circuit compared to the oddball recent venues like Las Vegas, Baku and Mexico City.
He starts from pole - his first qualifying top spot since Zandvoort - with Norris in third, while Verstappen suffered an error-strewn session to end up sixth
The ball is still very much in Norris' court though and - continuing the tennis terminology - this weekend represents his first match point for the title.
A few things might need to go his way but if he ends this weekend with a 26-point or greater lead over both drivers, he will be crowned champion on Sunday evening
Of course, we come into this race in a different state than we anticipated immediately after the Las Vegas GP following the post-race news that both McLarens had been disqualified.
With both Norris and Piastri being thrown out of the results, it is as you were from the start of last weekend - 24 points.
The big news however is that Max Verstappen was the BIG winner from the post-race drama as moves level with Piastri, just 24 points behind Norris
Hello and welcome to Crash.net's live text commentary for the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix Sprint Race, one of just three races remaining in this bristling 2025 F1 title race.
Just a maximum of eight points are on offer to the three title contenders, but at this stage in the season, every single point counts regardless
