Qatar Sprint Race and Grand Prix Grid Setting: Real-Time Coverage

Preamble

Philip is arriving soon to cover today's short race (14:00 GMT) and grid-setting session (6pm).

Current Events

Warm-Up Lap Time

The starting lap is underway.

Circuit Details

There are 19 laps of the longest circuit in Formula 1, the commentator points out.

Final Moments

The final countdown is underway.

Driver Situation

An advantage in Verstappen's advantage: his fellow driver Tsunoda is in front of him by one place. He is unlikely to mess with the team's main man.

Interview Updates

Sky speaking with Sky currently: Gary Neville is at the Mercedes team.

The analyst is looking forward to the 2026 season, speaking with the engineer about his promotion to Aston Martin lead role.

Starting Positions

There are only sixteen vehicles on the grid. This followed another poor grid-setting session for Lewis Hamilton: following his result of 20th and last in the previous race, resulting in an eighth position in the grand prix, he failed to advance of Q1 once more on Friday. The team have as a result made changes to his car configuration and so he will start from the starting area.

The team's Lance Stroll and the Alpine pair of Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all doing likewise.

Driver Comments

"We take the experience for the next day," says Hadjar, starting eleventh. Expect plenty of learning.

Team Standings

The focus isn't solely on the drivers' title: The team have dominated the team championship but the team, with a forty-point advantage over Red Bull, will be hoping to seal second place during this event. Russell can help them achieve that from second place, and Kimi Antonelli will start just behind Verstappen.

Past Performance

Oscar Piastri won that day – as he did last year, as well. McLaren's Australian is attempting a third consecutive win.

Short Race Importance

Right, just over 20 minutes to go till the sprint race begins. Unless something goes wrong, it's greatest value is as an indication of future events, rather than highly important in its itself, with only eight points available to the winner. However, the runner-up spot here was sufficient for the driver to claim the title two years ago.

Max Verstappen wins F1 world title following his teammate's accident of Qatar GP sprint race.