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

Preamble

Philip is arriving soon to take you through today's sprint race (14:00 GMT) and qualifying (6pm).

Current Events

Warm-Up Lap Period

The warm-up lap is underway.

Track Information

There are 19 laps of the longest circuit in Formula One, David Croft informs us.

Countdown

The last moments is on.

Racer Positions

One point in Verstappen's advantage: his teammate Tsunoda is ahead of him by a single position. He is unlikely to challenge Red Bull's lead driver.

Interview Updates

Sky speaking with Sky currently: the analyst is at the Mercedes team.

Karun Chandhok is jumping ahead to 2026, interviewing the engineer about his promotion to Aston Martin team principal.

Grid Details

Just 16 cars on the grid. It was another bad qualifying for the driver: following his result of twentieth and final in Las Vegas, leading to an eighth position in the grand prix, he did not manage to make it out of the first qualifying segment once more on the previous day. The team have as a result made changes to his setup and so he begins from the pit lane.

The team's Stroll and the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the same position.

Racer Statements

"We take the learning for tomorrow," states Isack Hadjar, starting eleventh. There will be a lot of that.

Team Standings

It's not all about the drivers' title: The team have dominated the constructors' gong but Mercedes, with a 40-point lead over Red Bull, are aiming to secure the runner-up position this weekend. Russell can help them achieve that from second place, and Antonelli will begin immediately after the leader.

Past Performance

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

Short Race Importance

Alright, approximately 20 minutes remaining until the short race gets under way. Barring disaster, its main importance is as a preview of what is to come, rather than highly important in its itself, with just eight championship points awarded to the winner. However, the runner-up spot in this race was enough for the driver to become champion two years ago.

The driver claimed the championship after his teammate's accident of the short race.