Lando Norris will start the sprint race in Qatar from pole position, holding the best cards to dominate this short desert race. Max Verstappen, however, is only in P6, and the newly crowned world champion does not expect miracles.
On the front row, Norris is joined by George Russell. The winner of the last race in Las Vegas will do everything he can to add another victory. “They are fighting for the championship, but we have nothing to lose,” said the Mercedes driver defiantly after the sprint qualification.
Just behind this duo, we find Oscar Piastri, Carlos Sainz, and Charles Leclerc respectively. They too smell opportunities to add a victory to their records in the closing stages of the season. Verstappen, who starts from P6, has already given up that hope. “That will be difficult with this speed,” the Red Bull driver realistically stated.
Pérez and Tsunoda Summoned by Stewards
Two drivers who notably underperformed in the starting lineup are Sergio Pérez (P16) and Yuki Tsunoda (P17). Both failed to advance beyond Q1 while their teammates managed to qualify within the top 10. Moreover, they are required to report to the stewards today due to an incident during the sprint qualifying. They are accused of driving too slowly between the safety car lines, which is against the rules. They are scheduled to answer for this at the FIA at 10:00 UTC.
The sprint race is set to start today at 13:00 UTC.
