The Dutch driver celebrated sealing his third F1 world title by finishing second in Saturday night's Qatar sprint race, which was won by Oscar Piastri, and has the perfect opportunity to toast his championship triumph in Sunday’s grand prix.
PLUS: 10 moments that won Verstappen the 2023 Formula 1 title
But all teams and drivers could be given a potential strategy curveball from the outcome of the FIA and Pirelli investigation into the tyre sidewall issues, which forced track changes at Turn 12 and 13.
An option that has been mooted is forcing all drivers into three-stop strategies for the grand prix, with a maximum of 20 racing laps allowed per tyre set across the 57-lap race, while a final call is expected on Sunday before the race.
Verstappen will be joined on the front row by George Russell, with Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton third alongside Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso in fourth.
After a penalty for track limits infringements dropped him out of the points in the sprint race, lead Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc starts fifth ahead of the Qatar sprint winner Piastri, who dropped from third to sixth after Friday qualifying when his best lap time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
Alpine duo Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon line up seventh and eighth in front of Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas, with Piastri's team-mate Lando Norris 10th after also having his best lap deleted for track limits on Friday.
When is the F1 Qatar Grand Prix?
Date: Sunday 8 October 2023
Start time: 6:00pm BST, 8:00pm local time
The 17th round of the 2023 F1 season, the Qatar GP at the Losail International Circuit, gets under way at 8:00pm local time (6:00pm BST) on Sunday 8 October.
How can I watch Formula 1?
In the United Kingdom Formula 1 is broadcast live on Sky Sports, with highlights shown on Channel 4 several hours after the race has finished. Live streaming through NOW is also available in the UK.
Sky Sports F1, which broadcasts the F1 races, can be added as part of the Sky Sports channels which costs £24 a month for new customers. Sky Sports can also be accessed through NOW with a one-off day payment of £11.98 or a month membership of £34.99 per month.
How can I watch the F1 Qatar GP?
In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports will be live broadcasting the Qatar GP.
The race will be shown live on Sky Sports F1, with pre-race coverage starting at 4:30pm BST on Sky Sports F1, ahead of the race start at 6:00pm BST.
• Channels: Sky Sports F1
• Start time: 4:30pm BST, Sunday 8 October 2023
Autosport will be running a live text coverage of the Qatar GP here.
When can I watch the F1 Qatar GP highlights?
In the United Kingdom Channel 4 is broadcasting highlights of the Japanese GP at 11:00pm BST on Sunday. The full programme will run for two hours and 25 minutes, covering the pre-race, the race highlights and the initial post-race reaction to wrap up the major talking points of the race weekend.
For the entire 2023 F1 season, Channel 4 will broadcast highlights of every qualifying and race of each event. The highlights will also be available on Channel 4’s on demand catch up services.
• Channel: Channel 4
• Start time: 11:00pm BST, Sunday 8 October 2023
Will the F1 Qatar GP be on the radio?
Live radio coverage of every practice, qualifying and race for the 2023 F1 season will be available on the BBC Radio 5 Live, 5 Live Sports Extra stations, the BBC Sounds app and the via the BBC Sport website.
Live coverage of the Qatar GP will start at 6:00pm BST on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and on the BBC Sounds app.
Weather forecast for the F1 Qatar GP
Current weather forecasts predict hot and dry conditions, with low winds and a low chance of rain. The temperature is expected to be 35 degrees Celsius for the start of the race.
How many laps is the F1 Qatar GP?
The race is scheduled to complete 57 laps of the Losail International Circuit, covering a total race distance of 308.611km.
F1 Qatar GP starting grid
Driver Info |
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Cla | Driver | # | Chassis | Engine | Time | km/h | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 | M. Verstappen Red Bull Racing | 1 | Red Bull | Red Bull | 1'23.778 | 231.182 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 | G. Russell Mercedes | 63 | Mercedes | Mercedes | +0.441 | 229.971 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 | L. Hamilton Mercedes | 44 | Mercedes | Mercedes | +0.527 | 229.737 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 | F. Alonso Aston Martin Racing | 14 | Aston Martin | Mercedes | +0.591 | 229.562 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | C. Leclerc Ferrari | 16 | Ferrari | Ferrari | +0.646 | 229.413 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | O. Piastri McLaren | 81 | McLaren | Mercedes | +0.762 | 229.098 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | P. Gasly Alpine | 10 | Alpine | Renault | +0.775 | 229.063 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | E. Ocon Alpine | 31 | Alpine | Renault | +0.985 | 228.495 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | V. Bottas Alfa Romeo | 77 | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | +1.280 | 227.703 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | L. Norris McLaren | 4 | McLaren | Mercedes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | Y. Tsunoda AlphaTauri | 22 | AlphaTauri | Red Bull | +1.523 | 227.054 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | C. Sainz Ferrari | 55 | Ferrari | Ferrari | +1.550 | 226.982 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | S. Perez Red Bull Racing | 11 | Red Bull | Red Bull | +1.684 | 226.627 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | A. Albon Williams | 23 | Williams | Mercedes | +1.929 | 225.979 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | N. Hulkenberg Haas F1 Team | 27 | Haas | Ferrari | +2.005 | 225.779 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | L. Sargeant Williams | 2 | Williams | Mercedes | +2.432 | 224.660 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | L. Stroll Aston Martin Racing | 18 | Aston Martin | Mercedes | +2.567 | 224.309 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | L. Lawson AlphaTauri | 40 | AlphaTauri | Red Bull | +2.857 | 223.558 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | K. Magnussen Haas F1 Team | 20 | Haas | Ferrari | +3.268 | 222.503 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | Z. Guanyu Alfa Romeo | 24 | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | +3.654 | 221.520 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
View full results |