Qatar's Sprint Race and Main Event Grid Setting: Live Coverage
Preamble
Our correspondent is arriving soon to take you through this day's sprint race (2pm GMT) and grid-setting session (18:00 GMT).
Live Feed
Formation Lap Period
The starting lap is underway.
Track Information
There are 19 laps of the longest circuit in F1, the commentator informs us.
Final Moments
The final countdown is underway.
Driver Situation
One point in Verstappen's favour: his fellow driver Tsunoda is ahead of him by a single position. He is unlikely to challenge the team's lead driver.
Interview Updates
Sky's internal discussion currently: Gary Neville is at the Mercedes team.
The analyst is jumping ahead to 2026, interviewing Adrian Newey about his promotion to the team lead role.
Starting Positions
Just 16 cars on the grid. This followed another bad qualifying for the driver: after coming 20th and last in the previous race, resulting in an eighth-place finish in the grand prix, he did not manage to make it out of the first qualifying segment once more on Friday. Ferrari have consequently adjusted to his setup and so he begins from the starting area.
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and the Alpine pair of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the same position.
Racer Statements
"We take the learning for the next day," states Isack Hadjar, 11th on the grid. Expect plenty of learning.
Team Standings
The focus isn't solely on the individual championship: McLaren have dominated the constructors' gong but Mercedes, with a forty-point advantage over Red Bull, will be hoping to secure the runner-up position this weekend. Russell can help them achieve that from the front row, and Kimi Antonelli will start just behind Verstappen.
Past Performance
Oscar Piastri won that day – as he managed last year, too. The driver from McLaren is going for a hat-trick.
Short Race Importance
Right, approximately twenty minutes to go until the sprint race gets under way. Unless something goes wrong, it's greatest value is as a preview of future events, rather than highly important in its itself, with just eight championship points awarded to the victor. However, the runner-up spot in this race was enough for the driver to claim the title two years ago.
The driver wins the championship after his teammate's accident of the short race.