14:40
Leclerc survives a messy Turn 1 to move into fifth place, Sainz and Antonelli into the top ten - only just
Bortoleto impressive in fourth
Lando Norris, McLaren Racing, Abu Dhabi
2025 F1 Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying: As it happened - Verstappen beats McLarens to pole but Norris well placed
Full live text commentary for the 2025 F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying session at the Yas Marina Circuit, the 24th and final round of the 2025 F1 season
Title hopefuls Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri go for pole position ahead of the all-important 2025 F1 season finale in Abu Dhabi... with Verstappen coming out on top at the Yas Marina Circuit
06 Dec 2025
14:42
Out after Q2
11- Bearman
12- Sainz
13- Lawson
14- Antonelli
15- Stroll
14:42
Q2 flag
Bearman, Sainz, Lawson, Antonelli and Stroll fail to progress out of Q2
Bearman jumped to 11th but will be out-qualified by Ocon, who makes it into Q3
Tsunoda through to Q3 for the first time since Baku, while Bortoleto was the big surprise with the fifth fastest time
14:37
Here we go, the drivers queue up on the way out of the pit lane
Piastri and then Norris will go last of all
14:35
Quick breather before we go again for the final wave of laps
Hadjar, Tsunoda, Antonelli, Bearman and Lawson sit in the Q2 drop zone
14:33
Norris into second, Piastri fourth
1- Russell
2- Norris
3- Verstappen
4- Piastri
5- Alonso
6- Bortoleto
7mins to go
14:32
Russell moves to the top of the timesheets from Verstappen and Alonso
The McLarens are coming around now though
14:32
Verstappen wastes no time by getting on track before anyone else by a good couple of minutes
He's fastest at the moment from Sainz, Ocon and Hadjar with 9mins to go
14:26
Q2 is go
Now the fight to get a spot in Q3
14:24
As for those safely through, that was a real statement-making effort from Piastri there - comfortably quicker than anyone else and a true sign of his pace having been rather hampered in the lead up to qualifying.
As for Norris, it looked neat, but his explosive one lap pace wasn't quite there and he'll be nervous to see Verstappen, Leclerc and both Mercedes' popping up between him and his team-mate
14:22
Hamilton apologises for failing to break out of Q1 for the third successive Grand Prix - four if you include the Qatar Sprint.
The Briton, whose build up was hampered by a crash in FP3, was one of the few failing to improve on their final runs and he was subsequently punished when Stroll, Bortoleto and Ocon lifted themselves out of the drop zone post flag
14:21
Out of Q1
16- Hamilton
17- Albon
18- Hulkenberg
19- Gasly
20- Colapinto
14:20
Hamilton out
Late gains from Stroll, Ocon and Bortoleto move them out of the drop zone
It dumps Hamilton out of Q1 for the third race in a row
He is joined by Albon, Hulkenberg, Gasly and Colapinto
14:19
Chequered flag
Verstappen, Antonelli and Leclerc pop up between Piastri and Norris
Stroll, Bortoleto, Ocon, Gasly and Colapinto in the bottom 5 as the flag drops
14:17
After a small error on his first lap, Lando Norris corrects himself by going quickest of all on his second effort... at least for a few seconds before Piastri bumps him down.
And by more than half a second as well
Both should be safely through to Q1, if there was ever a doubt
14:14
Less than 5mins to go and the pit lane is looking ever so busy as the drivers pile out all at once
14:13
Tough start to the session for Colapinto - both of his fast laps have been deleted due to track limits, rooting him to the bottom of the results with no time on the board.
Gasly is just one place above him having also had a lap time deleted
14:10
With 8mins to go, the bottom five are: Ocon, Albon, Leclerc, Gasly and Colapinto
14:09
The first wave of laps are chiming in with just under 10mins to go
Russell quickest from Bearman, followed by Piastri - the trio split by just 0.008s
Verstappen Alonso and Norris complete the top six
14:04
Hamilton gets a time on the board as he completes his first lap since spinning into the barriers in FP3
14:02
Alpine have the honour of getting out on track first - the final qualifying session for the Renault engine before it is mothballed in favour of Mercedes units in 2026
14:00
Q1 is go
Qualifying for the final round of the 2025 F1 season is underway
13:55
T-minus 5mins to Qualifying
13:42
Away from the title fight, there will be an unwelcome spotlight trained on Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton coming into this session.
The Briton is enduring a torrid end to what has been a lacklustre first campaign in Ferrari red. Q1 exits in Vegas and Qatar (twice) have contributed to him scoring just ten points in the last four GPs and two Sprints.
And he comes into qualifying in Abu Dhabi having dropped the Ferrari at Turn 9 and struck the barrier.
This is his final chance to get a GP podium on the board before the season is out, while he also has to defend a slim two point advantage over young rookie Kimi Antonelli in the overall standings
13:27
Going back to the title battle, the subject of team orders has been a keen topic of conversation.
Norris deftly ruled out the possibility of being the one to ask for help from Piastri if he needs it, but McLaren has piped up to say it would call on the Aussie to do his bit if it transpires that sacrificing position would help his team-mate get the better of Verstappen.
The most likely scenario of this is Verstappen leading with Piastri second or third and Norris fourth, which would require Piastri to drop position to lift Norris to third.
It remains to be seen if Piastri - who could still win the title - would comply, but the general feeling throughout the year has been for McLaren to beat Verstappen by any means possible
