That is all from me today but here is Giles Richards’ report in case you missed any of the action. Thanks for tuning in and join us next weekend for live updates on the final race of the season: the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Andrea Stella, the McLaren team principal has his say:
Our overall result was affected dramatically with the penalty. On Oscar’s side he did really well. Important points for him that keep a solid chance for the championship.
It is the responsibility of the driver to recognise that they are in a yellow sector.
At the same time, I find it particular that the yellow flag went up and then was removed even though the situation on the track was the same. The debris was the same. It was still on the track.
Norris tells Sky Sports he “does not know what I did wrong”.
Apparently I didn’t slow under the yellow. I am not an idiot. If I saw a yellow, I would have slowed down. The rule is you have to slow down under the yellow, so it is a fair penalty.
The team gave me a great car today, so I’m thankful for the team. Disappointed that I couldn’t have done a worse job than I did today, and not give them the points they deserved. So I’ve made the job of the team much harder than it needs to be. The team are doing a great job but I’ve let them down.
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Verstappen after his victory:
It was a very good race. Of course, already yesterday in qualifying the car was a lot better, and today that first stint was very, very fast. Lando and I were within 1.8sec of each other the whole time, pushing each other and it was a lot of fun out there.
This track has a lot of grip and this year the tires were really holding on, so that was a lot of fun to be really pushing. We went really long on that first stint. After that there were a few Safety Car moments that you had to take care, but very happy.
It’s been a while to be this competitive in the dry, and very proud of everyone in the team to turn it around within a day. So they definitely also deserve this victory.
On the hard tires there is very little grip. You just come out of the box and they’re already cold and behind the Safety Car you can’t warm them up. I tried something different out of the last corner, where I had no rear grip, so I just struggled for traction out of the corner.
It got a bit spicy into Turn 1 [against Norris] but I think that’s great to see. And then after that we drove it to the end with good pace, so very happy to win here.
The last three years we’ve always been quite competitive there [Abu Dhabi] so I hope we can be competitive there again but we will pay attention to detail to try and optimise the car and hopefully we can fight for a win there again.
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Leclerc on the race and Ferrari’s chances for the Constructors’ Championship:
I would have signed straight away a paper that told me we would have finished second on this track after a weekend like this because our car characteristics were not fitting very well with this track.
We knew it was going to be a very difficult weekend compared to McLaren but in the end we managed to take some point away from them so the fight will be all the way to the last race in Abu Dhabi next week.
It’s difficult to know [how fast Ferrari will be]. We are all very close. It’s going to be very tight but it’s exciting. Everything is possible and we will give it [our] all.
The Constructors’ Championship will go down to the wire. McLaren will head to Abu Dhabi 21 points ahead of Ferrari.
McLaren – 640
Ferrari – 619
Red Bull – 581
Piastri on making the podium but the disappointing result for McLaren:
It was a tricky race. The cars at the front seemed to have very similar pace too each other and it was really tough to make the inroads to get into DRS, and then far enough into DRS to overtake.
A couple of good moments with Charles out there and nice to end up on the podium, but not quite the result we were looking for.
Not sure what Lando’s penalty was for, but obviously quite a big one. It’s going to be an exciting end to the year. Hopefully we can be strong but it’s going to take everything we’ve got to seal the deal.
The track is one of the most fun of the year so it was a fun race, just didn’t enjoy the result.
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Russell, who was on pole, gets a time penalty but it does not affect his standing his finish of fourth. Gasly manages to keep at bay Sainz for fifth and Zhou finishes eighth and ends Sauber’s points drought.
Max Verstappen wins the Qatar Grand Prix!
No surprise here! Verstappen led from the moment he bypassed Russell right at the start. He has read the race really well and showcases why he is deservedly this season’s championship with his ninth win of the year.
Leclerc and Piastri secure podium spots in second and third.
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Lap 55/57: Hamilton gets past Lawson and Norris is now up to to 10th. Russell has now been noted for a safety car infringement.
Lap 53/57: As it stands the Constructors’ Championship will be decided in Abu Dhabi.
Lap 52/57: Tsunoda is struggling with his tires as Norris passes him. Alonso is getting close to Sainz in sixth. Verstappen may be well in the lead but plenty of competition behind him.
Lap 51/57: Magnussen speeds past Albon frustratingly to go up to ninth. Norris overtakes Lawson and is now in 13th. He is about three seconds faster than the cars in front of him so he can still get a point out of this race.
Lap 49/57: Hamilton wants to park the car and retire in his second-last race for Mercedes but he is being told no. Everything that has gone wrong for him in this race (and weekend) has. He is now in last place behind Norris.
Lap 46/57: Norris is now in last place due to the penalty. Verstappen, Leclerc and Piastri now the top three.
Hamilton now has a drive through penalty now for speeding in the pit lane.
Lap 44/57: Norris gets a 10 stop and go penalty for that yellow flag incident which he needs to serve within three laps. Seems a bit extreme but I guess it is a safety issue.
Lap 43/57: Everyone is weaving to get some heat in their tires. A less exciting start than the last one as Verstappen speeds away. Norris is under a bit of pressure from Leclerc but he forces him wide.
Lap 42/57: Norris is now officially under investigation for not slowing down for the yellow flags. That could be a time penalty. Hamilton tells his engineer that his car is “messed up”.
Safety car is about to end.
Lap 41/57: Pérez might have actually not been hit. Could be a hydraulics issue. We tune into the radio to get some insight, but all he does is swear. Fair enough.
Lap 40/57: The safety car ends. Verstappen under pressure and Norris is on the outside but the Red Bull driver is able to escape the wheel-to-wheel. Wow!
Pérez lost drive and gets hit at Turn 15. Hülkenberg is also out and … the safety car is back out again. That did not last long.
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Lap 39/57: Alonso pits for mediums and goes wheel-to-wheel with Magnussen before squeezing ahead. It will be looked at if it was safe enough got him to do that in the pit lane.
Verstappen asks if Norris will be punished for not lifting while the yellow flags were out.
Lap 38/57: Norris says Hamilton is speeding while the safety car is out.
Lap 38/57: The safety car goes through the pit lane to give a chance for the debris to be cleared away.
Lap 37/57: Russell: “Why have we put the hards on? Why have we put the fucking hards on? They’re shit!”
Lap 35/57: We now have a safety car out. About five laps too late. The debris has at least ruined two drivers’ races. Hamilton says: “Trust me to have this luck.”
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Lap 34/57: Bottas has just gone over the mirror and there are still no yellow flags. A ton of debris from the mirror is on the straight and now Hamilton and Sainz now both have punctures because of it. A disaster.
Lap 32/57: So strange they haven’t moved the mirror. It is on the straight which is the only place where someone can overtake another.
Lap 31/57: Norris asks for where to go against Verstappen and all he gets in response is to speak louder. No answer to his question.
Lap 30/57: We get two yellow flags in a row as someone has lost a wing mirror. It is just there in the middle of the straight. I believe it is Albon’s. Still no word on a safety car so that marshalls can come in and get it.
Lap 29/57: Russell tries to make a move on Alonso but he backs off immediately. He just can’t seem to get the speed on his new tires.
Lap 28/57: Alonso is keeping Russell at bay as Magnussen pits. Hamilton is sliding around now and he snaps which costs him a bit of time, as he remains in seventh.
Lap 27/57: Russell is waiting for his tires to get up to temperature. Hamilton says his car is beginning to turn and both Verstappen and Norris are somehow going quicker on the old tires.
Lap 23/57: Piastri is doing everything to get past Russell, even at the detriment of his tires. And the Mercedes driver is struggling a bit as he is in the pit and on go the hard tires. He was stationary in there for about seven seconds – way too lengthy. It costs him several places and gives an opening for Ferrari. The replay shows that they struggled to get one of the rear wheels off.
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Lap 22/57: Bottas is all by himself and he goes wide. All because of the lack of grip that all the drivers are somewhat struggling with.
Lap 19/57: Hamilton is shocked when he is told about the the top six’s pace compared to his own.
“Mid 25s?! That’s a second [faster]!”
Lap 18/57: Verstappen now marks the fastest lap in response. Norris now back to two seconds behind, Russell over four seconds in third.
Lap 17/57: Leclerc asks for a check on his tire pressure, saying that there are likely to be punctures but he is told that it is all good for now. He clearly feels he is being aggressive on the turns.
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Lap 16/57: Norris again races the fastest lap. Gap between first and second is now around 1.6.
Lap 15/47: Zhou also passes Tsunoda. He of course does not have a contract for next season.
Tsunoda is struggling, though. He tells his team that he is pushing 100% and he gets a reply to hang in there.
Lap 14/57: Huge from Alonso! Beautifully navigates around Tsunoda when staying on the track to get to 11th.
Confirmed that Hamilton gets a five second penalty.
Lap 13/57: On Norris’s radio, we hear his team say that Verstappen’s tires are in the same condition as his and Russell’s are a bit worse off.
Lap 12/57: Magnussen goes ahead of Tsunoda.
Lap 11/57: Norris has now the fastest lap but Verstappen is still just under two seconds ahead of him.
Lap 10/57: Stroll has officially retired. He rejoined just so he can serve the 10 second penalty so that it would not affect him in a future race.
Lap 9/57: Hamilton has now officially been noted for a false start. That is usually a five second penalty. The replay shows that it is tight and he does apologise on the radio. He is currently in 8th.
Lap 8/57: Alonso is not happy. He swears on the radio, saying that there is issues on the straights. And an incident for him has been noted for rejoining the track unsafely. He might be in trouble for that.
Lap 7/57: Huge gaps between Verstappen, Norris and Russell. Stroll retired but then he rejoins the race.
Lap 6/57: Lawson spins off as he tries to get past Bottas. Lawson lost grip and starting spinning.
Lap 5/57: Verstappen opens up the gap between him and Norris.
Piastri manages fourth from Leclerc – big for McLaren’s chances in securing the Constructors’ Championship today.
Lap 4/57: The safety car is ending … we have only had about half a lap of racing but here we go.
Lap 3/57: Safety car is still out. There are murmurings on the grid about Hamilton and if he made a false start but nothing official yet.
Hugh gets in touch by email:
That was weak by Lando. Roles reversed and Verstappen, quite rightly, would have cut straight across him and taken the inside of turn 1. Far too polite.
Still confused myself as to why he backed off! Did he feel something in his car? Or was he thinking Verstappen would push him off. Very strange.
Lap 2/57: Safety car remains out as we catch some replays of the crashes and the leaders in the race.
Norris looked to creep to first on turn one but he backed off a bit as Verstappen came through. Stroll has had to pitt to change tires.
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Lap 1/57: Russell is on the outside line to start. The track temperature is only 23 C, a lot cooler than previous years. Verstappen swoops in and takes the lead within the first turn and Norris speeds to second. Safety car comes out after Colapinto and Ocon, the 16th crash for Williams this season. Hülkenberg also had an incident and he has continued but his rim is popping out of his car.
Qatar Grand Prix race begins
Off they go for the formation lap! We are underway at the Lusail International Circuit.
We are a couple minutes away from lights out in Lusail. We have just heard of from the national anthem performed by the Qatar Music Academy Choir.
Here is our starting grid.
George Russell – Mercedes
Max Verstappen – Red Bull
Lando Norris – McLaren
Oscar Piastri – McLaren
Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
Carlos Sainz – Ferrari
Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin
Sergio Pérez – Red Bull
Kevin Magnussen – Haas
Pierre Gasly – Alpine Renault
Zhou Guanyu – Sauber
Valtteri Bottas – Sauber
Yuki Tsunoda – RB Honda
Lance Stroll – Aston Martin
Alexander Albon – Williams
Liam Lawson – RB Honda
Nico Hulkenberg – Haas
Franco Colapinto – Williams
Esteban Ocon – Alpine Renault
The Red Bull team principal Christian Horner tells Sky Sports that George Russell was speeding himself during the sprint, and likens it to a “football player taking a dive in the penalty box”.
“Not quite sure why we ended up with a one place penalty but if Max needed any extra motivation it has given him it for this. He is wound up for this one.”
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Our first email of the day! Louise writes:
What is your opinion on Verstappen’s punishment? Both Verstappen and Russell were in a ‘slow’ lap. Normally, you would try to get some clean air in front of you just before starting a fast lap. You can see there is another driver in front of Verstappen and Russell is speeding. It feels like this was a mistake by the race engineers, not telling them what happened, not a drivers mistake? Verstappen said he was preparing his fast lap and suddenly saw Russell on his tail.
The other driver was Fernando Alonso and you are right, he was going the exact same speed as well. Verstappen kept the same distance through both turns, he did not just decide to brake right as he was turning a corner. Certainly bizzare and I think that is why they minimised the penalty for Verstappen. Usually this situation would be a three-place grid penalty.
McLaren could clinch their first Constructors’ Championship since 1998 today if they:
Outscore Ferrari by 15 points or more if they do not win the race or outscore Ferrari by 14 points if they do win the race.
Not be outscored by Red Bull by 23 points or more.
A look back on how Verstappen became the 2024 champion.
Max Verstappen speaking to Sky Sports on qualifying and his penalty:
Qualifying was very positive. The car seems to be working a bit better. I hope in the race we can be competitive and fight up front.
We will try to fight for the win. I am one place back but let’s see how it goes.
Ben Sulayem: 'None of your business how FIA is run'
The FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem has told Formula One drivers to mind their own business after they asked where money from race fines was going and why senior figures had left the governing body.
In an interview before today’s race, Ben Sulayem suggested the drivers should stick to what they know best.
“Do we have to tell them? When something in the teams changes, do they tell us?” Ben Sulayem said when asked about the surprise departure of the race director Niels Wittich before last weekend’s title-deciding Las Vegas Grand Prix. “We have the rules, we follow our rules. We don’t follow someone else’s rule. Simple as this.”
Wittich has said he did not resign and the FIA have given no public explanation as to why he suddenly left beyond saying it was to pursue new opportunities. Media reports have said he was sacked.
The Mercedes driver George Russell, a director of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA), said on Thursday drivers wanted clarity and understanding “of what’s going on and who’s getting fired next”.
Ben Sulayem, a former rally driver who was elected as FIA head in 2021, responded: “Do we tell them how to drive? Do we tell them what to have as their strategy? It’s none of their business. Sorry … I am a driver. I respect the drivers. Let them go and concentrate on what they do best, which is race.”
The GPDA issued a remarkable statement last month, in response to an FIA clampdown on swearing, in which they asked Ben Sulayem to treat them like adults and mind his own language towards them.
They also requested financial transparency and said all stakeholders, including drivers and teams, should jointly determine how and where the money from fines was spent – with some suggesting it could help fund professional stewards.
“They talk and then they say, where are you putting the money? Why we don’t do this? I don’t say ‘Oh, sorry, what about you?’” said Ben Sulayem. “The drivers are getting over 100m. Do I ask where they spend it? No. It’s up to them. It’s their right … we do whatever we do with the money. It’s our business. It’s also with them and their money. It’s their business.”
Ben Sulayem said the drivers had his mobile number and he had nothing to hide. He said he “lived free of charge” in the brains of critics in the media and did not need them or care what people said. He also rejected any suggestion that the FIA was in crisis and suffering a staff exodus under his leadership.
Despite his “none of your business” stance, the Emirati said later that €10.3m had been invested in grassroots single-seater racing last year.
“You really think I would waste the money? This is not commercial. This is the money of the members, and I have been elected to safeguard that,” he said. He added that 64 employees had joined the FIA in 2023 and 92 in 2024. “I have been elected to fix the FIA. and I am fixing it. I am very happy with our new team. Very happy. I inherited an FIA with an operating cost of €23m. And where is it now? This will be the first year that we are plus.” Reuters
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Preamble
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen may already be our 2024 Formula One champion but the fight for second in the drivers’ standings and top honors in the constructors’ standings is still very much alive in the second to last race of the season.
Mercedes’ George Russell will start from pole position in Qatar after Verstappen was given a one-place grid penalty for impediment during qualifying. In the final laps of qualifying, Verstappen slowed in the third sector, forcing Russell onto gravel.
Verstappen’s alleged offence was “driving unnecessarily slowly” and after Russell gave his version of events, a decision was communicated more than three hours after the end of the session.
It wouldn’t be F1 without drama, right?
Verstappen’s points tally is 404 points. McLaren’s Lando Norris is second with 347 points and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is third with 323 points.
For constructors, McLaren leads with 623 points. Ferrari is second with 593 points and Red Bull is third with 556 points.
As always, if you have any thoughts, questions, predictions, complaints or jokes you would like to share, then send me an email.
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