Sprint Qualifying results: Carlos Sainz P4, Charles Leclerc P5 at Lusail Circuit | F1 Qatar GP
Today at 01:26 PM
The Sprint Qualifying comes to life on the Doha circuit: during SQ1, the drivers try to set their first laps with medium tires, with Lando Norris setting the fastest time at 1:22:785, followed by George Russell by a mere thousandth of a second; Charles Leclerc is fourth and Carlos Sainz seventh. However, in the next lap, the Spaniard manages to significantly improve his performance, moving to first place, which then becomes second after Leclerc surpasses him to take the lead.
Thanks to the improving track conditions, all the drivers improve their times, creating chaos in the timing table, which is constantly changing. At the end of SQ1, Norris is at the top, followed by Sainz, who is four-tenths behind; then come Russell and Verstappen. Charles Leclerc is sixth. The drivers eliminated are: Sergio Perez, Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon, Zhou, and Colapinto.
During SQ2, Verstappen is the first to set a fast lap, taking the top spot, which is immediately taken by Leclerc, who beats him by fifty-eight thousandths of a second; Norris is second. As for the two Mercedes drivers, their first times are only enough for twelfth for Russell and thirteenth for Lewis Hamilton. But, just like in SQ1, the performance of all drivers improves. The fastest at the end of the session is once again Norris, followed by George Russell and Oscar Piastri; Carlos Sainz is sixth, and Charles Leclerc seventh. The drivers eliminated are: Alonso, Albon, Bottas, Stroll, and Magnussen.
In the final part of the session, it's time for soft tire laps, where Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri immediately make the difference, taking first and second positions; Russell follows. The two Ferrari drivers, possibly facing issues with their tire compounds, set a second flying lap just seconds before the checkered flag: Carlos Sainz takes fourth, and Charles Leclerc takes fifth. Lando Norris claims the pole position for Sprint Qualifying, followed by George Russell and Oscar Piastri.
| Pos | Num | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Diff |
| 1 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:21.356 | 1:21.231 | 1:21.012 | |
| 2 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:22.021 | 1:21.488 | 1:21.075 | 0.063 |
| 3 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:22.218 | 1:21.548 | 1:21.171 | 0.159 |
| 4 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:21.838 | 1:21.809 | 1:21.281 | 0.269 |
| 5 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:22.156 | 1:21.818 | 1:21.308 | 0.296 |
| 6 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | 1:22.033 | 1:21.784 | 1:21.315 | 0.303 |
| 7 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:22.151 | 1:21.734 | 1:21.474 | 0.462 |
| 8 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:22.586 | 1:22.352 | 1:21.978 | 0.966 |
| 9 | 30 | Liam Lawson | RB | 1:22.705 | 1:22.393 | 1:22.082 | 1.070 |
| 10 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 1:22.569 | 1:22.318 | 1:22.088 | 1.076 |
| 11 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:22.499 | 1:22.433 | ||
| 12 | 23 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:22.705 | 1:22.526 | ||
| 13 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | 1:22.506 | 1:22.538 | ||
| 14 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:22.522 | 1:22.599 | ||
| 15 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1:22.560 | 1:22.738 | ||
| 16 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull Racing | 1:22.718 | |||
| 17 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB | 1:22.722 | |||
| 18 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1:22.906 | |||
| 19 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Sauber | 1:22.948 | |||
| 20 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Williams | 1:23.423 |
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