Mercedes’ George Russell passed polewinner and early leader Piastri soon after a restart on lap three, but Russell’s pace on softer tyres fell away as the sprint entered its second half and Piastri repassed him to lead once more.
After a poor start on mediums, Verstappen surged up to third – although his progress was hampered by no less than three safety car interventions.
In the final five-lap dash to the finish, Verstappen passed Russell but could do nothing about Piastri, who scored his first F1 victory.
2023 F1 Qatar GP sprint results
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Laps | Gap |
| 1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 19 | - |
| 2 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 19 | -1.871 |
| 3 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 19 | -8.497 |
| 4 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 19 | -11.036 |
| 5 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 19 | -17.314 |
| 6 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 19 | -18.806 |
| 7 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 19 | -19.860 |
| 8 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams/Mercedes | 19 | -19.864 |
| 9 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 19 | -21.180 |
| 10 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine/Renault | 19 | -21.742 |
| 11 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 19 | -22.208 |
| 12 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 19 | -22.863 |
| 13 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 19 | -24.523 |
| 14 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 19 | -24.970 |
| 15 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 19 | -26.868 |
| - | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 11 | - |
| - | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | 10 | - |
| - | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 10 | - |
| - | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams/Mercedes | 2 | - |
| - | 40 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 0 | - |
How the 2023 F1 Qatar GP sprint unfolded
Piastri led from his first ever F1 pole on medium tyres, ahead of the soft-shod Russell and the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc – who all gained huge advantages away from the startline. Verstappen fell to sixth by the first corner but jumped ahead of Lando Norris (McLaren) at Turn 2, who slumped from the front row down to sixth.
The race immediately required a safety car, when Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri) spun off all by himself, and restarted on lap three. Moments after it went green again, Russell grabbed the lead from Piastri at Turn 6 with an aggressive lunge.
Further back, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon snatched seventh from Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin, after the Spaniard lost momentum trying to pass the struggling Norris.
A second safety car was needed when Logan Sargeant spun his Williams into the gravel on lap four.
At the restart on lap seven, Russell caught Piastri napping to lead by 1.5s, as Sainz attacked at Turn 1. Alonso repassed Ocon in the battle for seventh.
Verstappen DRS-ed past Leclerc for fourth on lap nine and did likewise on Sainz a lap later.
Russell’s pace suddenly fell away, allowing Piastri to power past him on the start/finish straight on lap 10. Behind them, Norris passed Leclerc around the outside of Turn 1 for fifth.
A three-wide moment between Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) and Sergio Perez (Red Bull) ended with all three colliding, sending Ocon and Perez into the gravel and all were out of the race. It meant a third safety car intervention.
The race restarted with a five-lap dash to the finish, with Leclerc repassing Norris into Turn 1. Piastri extended a 1s gap over Russell, who had Verstappen right on his tail. Verstappen took second at Turn 1 on the next tour and set off after Piastri, who now had a 2.4s lead.
Norris passed Leclerc again, as well as Sainz, to grab fourth on the following lap.
Verstappen was only able to take a couple of tenths out of Piastri in the closing stages, and was forced to settle for second, while Norris passed Russell on the final lap for third.
The second Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton charged up to fifth, as Sainz and Leclerc fell back to sixth and seventh respectively.
2023 F1 Qatar GP sprint fastest laps
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Time | Gap | Kp/h |
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.604 | 227.891 | |
| 2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'25.662 | 0.058 | 227.736 |
| 3 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'25.926 | 0.322 | 227.037 |
| 4 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1'27.220 | 1.616 | 223.668 |
| 5 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'27.968 | 2.364 | 221.767 |
| 6 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'28.584 | 2.980 | 220.224 |
| 7 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'28.644 | 3.040 | 220.075 |
| 8 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 1'28.717 | 3.113 | 219.894 |
| 9 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams/Mercedes | 1'28.717 | 3.113 | 219.894 |
| 10 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'28.759 | 3.155 | 219.790 |
| 11 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine/Renault | 1'28.769 | 3.165 | 219.765 |
| 12 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'29.017 | 3.413 | 219.153 |
| 13 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 1'29.307 | 3.703 | 218.442 |
| 14 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 1'29.381 | 3.777 | 218.261 |
| 15 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | 1'29.388 | 3.784 | 218.244 |
| 16 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 1'29.536 | 3.932 | 217.883 |
| 17 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'29.553 | 3.949 | 217.841 |
| 18 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1'29.560 | 3.956 | 217.824 |
| 19 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams/Mercedes | 2'03.562 | 37.958 | 157.883 |
What happened in Qatar GP sprint shootout qualifying?
After a 10-minute practice session for familiarisation, as the FIA changed the track layout overnight at Turns 12/13 following issues raised by Pirelli about sidewall separation, Piastri set pole position.
Qatar GP sprint shootout results: Piastri on pole from Norris
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Time | Delay [s] |
| 1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.454 | - |
| 2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.536 | 0.082 |
| 3 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'24.646 | 0.192 |
| 4 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1'24.841 | 0.387 |
| 5 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'25.155 | 0.701 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'25.247 | 0.793 |
| 7 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 1'25.320 | 0.866 |
| 8 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.382 | 0.928 |
| 9 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | - | - |
| 10 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | - | - |
| 11 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine/Renault | 1'25.686 | 1.232 |
| 12 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'25.962 | 1.508 |
| 13 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'26.236 | 1.782 |
| 14 | 40 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 1'26.584 | 2.130 |
| 15 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'54.546 | 30.092 |
| 16 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 1'26.849 | 2.395 |
| 17 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams/Mercedes | 1'26.862 | 2.408 |
| 18 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 1'26.926 | 2.472 |
| 19 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas/Ferrari | 1'27.438 | 2.984 |
| 20 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams/Mercedes | 2'05.741 | 41.287 |
What happened in Qatar GP SQ1?
Russell set the fastest time of 1m25.413s on the mandated medium tyres.
Falling at the first hurdle were Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Alex Albon (Williams), Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri, after his quickest lap was deleted for exceeding track limits), Kevin Magnussen (Haas) and Logan Sargeant (Williams).
Qatar GP SQ1 results: Russell fastest from Verstappen
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Time | Delay | Laps | km/h |
| 1 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.947 | 3 | 229.653 | |
| 2 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1'25.027 | 0.080 | 7 | 229.437 |
| 3 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.143 | 0.196 | 6 | 229.125 |
| 4 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.199 | 0.252 | 3 | 228.974 |
| 5 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 1'25.344 | 0.397 | 5 | 228.585 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'25.367 | 0.420 | 7 | 228.523 |
| 7 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'25.433 | 0.486 | 7 | 228.347 |
| 8 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'25.496 | 0.549 | 6 | 228.179 |
| 9 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 1'25.499 | 0.552 | 6 | 228.171 |
| 10 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | 1'25.510 | 0.563 | 5 | 228.141 |
| 11 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine/Renault | 1'25.686 | 0.739 | 5 | 227.673 |
| 12 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'25.962 | 1.015 | 7 | 226.942 |
| 13 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'26.236 | 1.289 | 3 | 226.221 |
| 14 | 40 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 1'26.584 | 1.637 | 6 | 225.311 |
| 15 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'54.546 | 29.599 | 5 | 170.310 |
What happened in Qatar GP SQ2?
Norris set the quickest time of 1m24.947s, again on mandated mediums.
Knocked out at this point were track limits victims Pierre Gasly (Alpine) and Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), along with Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo), Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri) and Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo).
Qatar GP SQ2 results: Norris fastest from Verstappen
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Time | Delay | Laps | km/h |
| 1 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.947 | 3 | 229.653 | |
| 2 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1'25.027 | 0.080 | 7 | 229.437 |
| 3 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.143 | 0.196 | 6 | 229.125 |
| 4 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.199 | 0.252 | 3 | 228.974 |
| 5 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | 1'25.344 | 0.397 | 5 | 228.585 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'25.367 | 0.420 | 7 | 228.523 |
| 7 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'25.433 | 0.486 | 7 | 228.347 |
| 8 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'25.496 | 0.549 | 6 | 228.179 |
| 9 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 1'25.499 | 0.552 | 6 | 228.171 |
| 10 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | 1'25.510 | 0.563 | 5 | 228.141 |
| 11 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine/Renault | 1'25.686 | 0.739 | 5 | 227.673 |
| 12 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1'25.962 | 1.015 | 7 | 226.942 |
| 13 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'26.236 | 1.289 | 3 | 226.221 |
| 14 | 40 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT | 1'26.584 | 1.637 | 6 | 225.311 |
| 15 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo/Ferrari | 1'54.546 | 29.599 | 5 | 170.310 |
What happened in Qatar Grand Prix SQ3?
After his first effort was deleted due to track limits, Verstappen could only manage third on his measured final run.
That resulted in a McLaren 1-2, and Piastri beat Norris to score his first F1 pole with 1m24.454s on his final run as Norris ran off course at the final corner.
George Russell was fourth quickest for Mercedes, ahead of Fernando Alonso (Aston), the Ferraris of Sainz and Leclerc, Nico Hulkenberg (Haas), Sergio Perez (Red Bull) and Esteban Ocon (Alpine).
Qatar GP SQ3 results: Piastri takes sprint pole
| Cla | Nº | Driver | Car / Engine | Time | Delay | Laps | km/h |
| 1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.454 | 5 | 230.994 | |
| 2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren/Mercedes | 1'24.536 | 0.082 | 5 | 230.770 |
| 3 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'24.646 | 0.192 | 6 | 230.470 |
| 4 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1'24.841 | 0.387 | 3 | 229.940 |
| 5 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1'25.155 | 0.701 | 6 | 229.092 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1'25.247 | 0.793 | 6 | 228.845 |
| 7 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas/Ferrari | 1'25.320 | 0.866 | 3 | 228.649 |
| 8 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull/Honda RBPT | 1'25.382 | 0.928 | 5 | 228.483 |
| 9 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin/Mercedes | - | 3 | ||
| 10 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine/Renault | - | 3 |
