Qatar Short Race and Main Event Grid Setting: Real-Time Updates

Opening Notes

The author is arriving soon to cover today's short race (14:00 GMT) and qualifying (18:00 GMT).

Real-Time Updates

Starting Lap Time

The formation lap is underway.

Circuit Details

There are 19 laps around the lengthiest track in Formula One, David Croft reminds us.

Countdown

The final countdown has begun.

Driver Situation

An advantage in Verstappen's favour: his teammate Tsunoda is ahead of him by one place. It's improbable to mess with Red Bull's lead driver.

Media Conversations

Sky's internal discussion now: the analyst is at the Mercedes team.

Karun Chandhok is jumping ahead to the 2026 season, interviewing Adrian Newey about his stepping up to the team lead role.

Starting Positions

There are only 16 cars on the grid. This followed another bad qualifying for Lewis Hamilton: following his result of twentieth and final in Las Vegas, leading to an eighth-place finish in the main race, he did not manage to advance of the first qualifying segment once more on the previous day. The team have consequently adjusted to his car configuration and so he will start from the pit lane.

Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and the Alpine pair of Pierre Gasly and Colapinto are all doing likewise.

Driver Comments

"We'll use the learning for the next day," states Hadjar, 11th on the grid. Expect plenty of learning.

Constructors' Championship

The focus isn't solely on the individual championship: The team have run away with the constructors' gong but Mercedes, with a forty-point advantage over their rivals, are aiming to secure the runner-up position this weekend. George Russell can help them achieve that from the front row, and Antonelli will start just behind Verstappen.

Past Performance

Piastri won that day – as he did last year, too. The driver from McLaren is attempting a third consecutive win.

Sprint Race Value

Alright, approximately twenty minutes to go until the short race gets under way. Unless something goes wrong, its main importance is as an indication of future events, instead of significant in its own right, with just eight championship points awarded to the victor. However, the runner-up spot here was enough for the driver to claim the title in a prior season.

The driver claimed F1 world title following Pérez crashes out of the short race.