The Qatar Grand Prix opened with a clean race start, but from Lap 7 it developed into a strategic battle focused on tire management, pit strategy, long-run pace, and the Safety Car period. With the teams forced into different pit-stop timings and tire choices, the race turned into a game of pace control and avoiding mistakes. Max Verstappen secured a key win, keeping the championship fight alive heading into Abu Dhabi, while McLaren tried to defend their early track position.
Follow PaddockLines on social media: Facebook and Instagram
Start
At lights out, Verstappen made a much stronger launch than Lando Norris and moved ahead around the outside of Turn 1. Norris started from the dirty side of the grid, which reduced his grip. Behind them, George Russell had a difficult opening lap, slipping down to P7.
Lap 3
Pierre Gasly’s Alpine began to throw sparks constantly. It quickly became clear that he had damage to the floor, affecting his pace. This early damage shaped the rest of his race.
Laps 7-10
The first major strategic moment came on Laps 7-10, when a Safety Car was deployed after Hulkenberg and Gasly made contact, leaving Hulkenberg with heavy damage to his right-rear wheel.
Verstappen chose to pit during the Safety Car, creating the first big strategy split of the race, while both McLarens stayed out to keep track position.
Antonelli lost time during his stop because traffic in the fast lane prevented him from leaving immediately. Ocon was handed a 5-second penalty for a jump start. At the restart, the warmed-up McLaren tires helped Norris and Piastri pull a small gap from the rest of the field.
Lap 15
Verstappen was 4.2 seconds behind Norris. The McLarens were expected to stop in roughly 10 laps, so the team pushed to increase the margin before their mandatory tire change.
Laps 20-22
The gaps stabilized at 3.5 seconds between P1 and P2, and 4.5 seconds from P2 to P3.
Lap 24
Piastri boxed at the end of Lap 24. A 3.1-second stop brought him back out ahead of Alonso, with clean air to push.
Lap 25
Because of the 25-lap tire limit, Norris also had to pit. A very strong 2.2-second stop put him ahead of Alonso as well. This was crucial for the McLaren strategy.
Lap 30
Piastri caught Antonelli quickly. To avoid staying in dirty air and destroying his tires, he had to make the overtake, which he executed cleanly.
Lap 32
Drivers who stopped during the Safety Car now had to pit again. Verstappen changed to hard tires, while the pit lane became extremely busy. After the cycle, Piastri held a 7.7-second lead over Verstappen.
Laps 37-38
Norris told the team he had gone off the track and asked if the car had visible damage. McLaren advised him to slow down slightly in high-speed corners to avoid overheating the tires.
Laps 41-43
Piastri also made a mistake, damaging the floor of his McLaren by hitting a kerb. He suggested an early stop, and the team agreed. He boxed the next lap, rejoining with a 17-second deficit to Verstappen. To fight for the win, he would have needed to gain more than one second per lap, which was nearly impossible.
Lap 44
Norris stopped for fresh hard tires, dropping behind Sainz and Antonelli, returning to P5 for his final stint.
Lap 57
Antonelli made an error, allowing Norris to pass him for fourth place.
Final Classification
Verstappen, Piastri, Sainz, Norris, Antonelli, Russell, Alonso, Leclerc, Lawson, Tsunoda
Championship Standings After Qatar
1st Norris – 408 pts
2nd Verstappen – 396 pts
3rd Piastri – 392 pts
The full results of the race, according to FIA.com:
