Summary

Send us your F1 views

Live Reporting

Lorraine McKenna

  1. Lap 4/19

    Oscar Piastri and George Russell are leading the way, as McLaren team-mate Lando Norris and four-time world champion Max Verstappen grapple for third place. The Dutchman has just clocked the fastest lap of this sprint race but he's on the radio to say the bouncing is back.

    Lando Norris ahead of Max VerstappenGetty Images

  2. 'Interesting test for Verstappen and Red Bull'

    Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Max Verstappen has been struggling all the way through the Friday, so this is going to be a really interesting test.

    Although it's in a race situation, rather than the shorter runs he did in practice and in qualifying, this will be an interesting test on how that Red Bull is performing on this track.

  3. Verstappen tries a move

    Lap 3/19

    Max Verstappen is powering towards championhip leader Lando Norris. The Dutchman tries to catch the Briton out with a move early on lap three but the McLaren stahs ahead. That Red Bull isn't bouncing like an idiot today.

    Charles Leclerc, meanwhile, went wide in the openinmg lap and has tumbled down the order to 13th place from ninth spot.

    Lando Norris ahead of Max VerstappenGetty Images

  4. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Max Verstappen as we predicted now makes his way past Yuki Tsunoda. No heroics from the top three, I thought George Russell was going to get a little bit more aggressive.

  5. Piastri leads

    Lap 2/19

    Oscar Piastri leads George Russell by 1.2 seconds, as Lando Norris now has Max Verstappen for company with DRS enabled. Carlos Sainz and Kimi Antonelli are in the final two points places, with fernando Alonso dropping from fourth to sixth place.

    Oscar PiastriGetty Images

  6. Get Involved

    Hopefully a new English World Champion by the end of the weekend! Go Lando!

    Mark

    Lando NorrisGetty Images

  7. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    I think the race is going to settle very quickly into a status quo. The real opportunity for everybody is going down into Turn One and particularly on this opening lap.

  8. Go! Go! Go!

    Lap 1/19

    And they're off!

    Oscar Piastri makes a great start and he's leading the field out of the first corner. Max Verstappen has picked off both team-mate Yuki Tsunoda and Fernando Alonso and is up to fourth place. Spaniard Alonso is down to sixth.

    Race startGetty Images

  9. Lando Norris is 24 points ahead of Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen as we get ready for this sprint race. He can't win the title tonight, but he can become champion tomorrow if he picks up two more points than his rivals across the weekend.

    The pit-lane starters take their positions. Here we go...

  10. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Lando Norris doesn't need to win this sprint, he has got to have the big picture in mind here.

    All he needs to do is not fall too far behind his team-mate Oscar Piastri.

    He has a sizeable points advantage, he can play the game sensibly.

  11. Formation lap

    The medium tyre is bolted on for Oscar Piastri and George Russell but it looks like Max Verstappen is also a yellow-tyre runner, which is not what the official site is saying. Lando Norris has opted for the hard tyre in Qatar, we think.

    Lance Stroll, Lewis Hamilton, Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the pit lane but remember, you don't need to make a pit stop during this 19-lap race - it goes by way too quick.

  12. Who is starting in the sprint points?

    Fernando AlonsoGetty Images

    The points on offer today are also crucial for the midfield battle. Aston Martin have slipped to eighth in the constructors' championship, one point behind seventh-placed Haas, but Fernando Alonso's excellent fourth in qualifying means they can go back above the American-based team if the Spaniard stays in the top eight.

    1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

    2. George Russell (Mercedes)

    3. Lando Norris (McLaren)

    4. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

    5. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)

    6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

    7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

    8. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

  13. What is the Qatar sprint weather forecast?

    Ian Fergusson
    BBC weather forecaster

    Air temperature is 25.5C and the track 32.2C. Humidity is 47%.

    Wind is from the north-north-west with gusts to 18mph in the past hour.

    Dry and fine; FIA official risk of rain is 0%.

  14. Get Involved

    Use the 'Get Involved' button to have your say

    Hard to see Max making much impact with a heavily damaged floor. Think Piastri leads home a McLaren 1-2 with Max slotting into 4th behind Russell

    Baxty

    If Max knows he can't win is he going to try to help his pal Norris win if Piastri looks like being a serious threat at the front?

    Pip

  15. Miserable day for Hamilton

    Lewis Hamilton walks back to the garage after being knocked out in SQ1Getty Images

    Lewis Hamilton cut a dejected figure once again after his latest qualifying eliminattion, this time in SQ1 for the Qatar sprint. The seven-time world champion was set to start 18th on the grid (now it's the pit lane), a long way off any of the points places, and said his Ferrari wouldn't go any quicker.

    The latest disappointment comes a week after he qualified P20 for the Las Vegas Grand Prix and then saying he wasn't looking forward to next season. However, he did clarify on Thursday those comments were made in the "heat of frustration".

    His post-qualifying interview with Sky Sports yesterday was a short one. Asked if there were any positives for today's sprint, he smiled and answered: "The weather's nice".

  16. 'Everyone is biting their nails'

    Jennie Gow
    F1 pit-lane reporter at Lusail Circuit

    There's a lot of tension and expectation this weekend, the championship won't be decided today.

    It could be decided this weekend and everyone is biting their nails.

  17. Survival mode for Verstappen

    Max VerstappenGetty Images

    The Red Bull was "bouncing like an idiot" during Max Verstappen's Friday running, leaving the Dutchman frustrated over the radio - and out-qualified by team-mate Yuki Tsunoda for the first time this season.

    Tsunoda, whose future is yet to be decided for the 2026 campaign, was 0.009 seconds quicker than defending champion Verstappen, placing him fifth on the sprint grid, one place higher than the Dutchman.

    "With this balance, in the sprint it will not be a lot of fun," said Verstappen, who was last out-qualified by a team-mate at the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

    "It will be more about trying to survive and then make some changes going into qualifying."

  18. Listen to live commentary

    BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    A warm welcome to Jennie Gow who is joining Harry Benjamin, former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley and BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson for the rest of the weekend.

    Live Sports Extra commentary is up and running, so click the 'listen live' tab at the top of the page to tune in.

  19. 'Impossible to overtake' - Norris

    Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri shake handsGetty Images

    A golden ticket to championship glory is within touching distance for Lando Norris but his chances of moving up the order in the 100km sprint and challenging for the full eight points are slim.

    "It's impossible to overtake, so I think I am probably going to finish P3 but if I can at least get George off the line, that's probably the most I can hope for," the Briton said after qualifying in third place.

    So, can Norris pick off Russell out the gate and at least climb to second spot? It can be done, as his team-mate Oscar Piastri managed to execute the exact same move during last year's Qatar sprint.

  20. Get Involved

    Would love to see Verstappen climb up the order and have a proper fight with Norris and Piastri for the win, but I think Russell will have the edge this afternoon.

    Robert