Oscar Piastri claimed pole for the Qatar Grand Prix Sprint at Lusail International Circuit, edging Mercedes’ George Russell by 0.032 seconds. Lando Norris, Piastri’s McLaren team-mate and championship leader, was third after a mistake on his second flying lap in SQ3, while Max Verstappen could only manage sixth following an error on his first SQ3 attempt.
Piastri produced a strong display after topping Friday’s only practice session, ending a run of qualifying form that had seen him outpaced by Norris over one lap on six successive occasions. He said: “It has been a good day, which is nice for a change. Things clicked from the start, so thanks to the team. There are a few things to tidy up, which is nice to say on pole. It’s only Sprint pole but I will take whatever I can get.”
Norris is 24 points clear of both Piastri and Verstappen going into Saturday’s Sprint at the penultimate round of the season. He will seal the title on Sunday if he is at least 26 points ahead in the standings. Norris admitted he made a late error in qualifying: “The pace was there but I made a mistake in the last corner. I just didn’t put it together.” After a brief heated exchange with his engineer over pit-lane timing and letting Alex Albon past before a final lap, Norris added he still plans to try for the win but expected overtaking to be difficult: “I would be stupid not to try and win but it is impossible to overtake so I think I will probably finish P3.”
Verstappen arrived in Qatar on good momentum from Vegas but struggled with his car balance all day, complaining over the radio about the car “bouncing like an idiot”. He aborted his first flying lap in SQ3 after running off track and was beaten by Red Bull team-mate Yuki Tsunoda for the first time this season. Verstappen said: “Not good from the first lap. Just really bad bouncing and very aggressive understeer that would shift into oversteer at high speed. We tried to change a few things on the wheel but it never really worked… With this balance, it will not be a lot of fun. It will be more about trying to survive I guess and make some changes going into qualifying.”
Lewis Hamilton’s difficult debut campaign with Ferrari continued as he was knocked out in SQ1 and will start 18th. Having qualified last in Las Vegas, Hamilton again lacked pace and was terse in his post-session interview.
Top 10 — Qatar GP Sprint Qualifying
1) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
2) George Russell, Mercedes
3) Lando Norris, McLaren
4) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
5) Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
6) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
7) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
8) Carlos Sainz, Williams
9) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
10) Alex Albon, Williams
Qatar GP Sprint Qualifying timesheet (selected)
1) Oscar Piastri (McLaren) — 1:20.055
2) George Russell (Mercedes) — +0.032
3) Lando Norris (McLaren) — +0.230
4) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) — +0.395
5) Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull) — +0.464
6) Max Verstappen (Red Bull) — +0.473
7) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) — +0.477
8) Carlos Sainz (Williams) — +0.487
9) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) — +0.567
10) Alex Albon (Williams) — +0.733
Knocked out in SQ2 included Isack Hadjar, Oliver Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon. SQ1 eliminations included Lance Stroll, Liam Lawson, Lewis Hamilton, Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto.
Weekend note: The Qatar Sprint runs Saturday, with Sprint build-up and the Sprint itself in the afternoon; the main race is scheduled for Sunday. Formula 1’s season-ending triple header continues with the Qatar Grand Prix Sprint weekend at Lusail.