The Qatar Grand Prix qualifying session has just concluded, and it turned into a disastrous evening for Ferrari, while Oscar Piastri claimed a brilliant pole position ahead of both of his title rivals. With only one race left after this weekend, the fight for the final points of the season is intensifying, but Ferrari found themselves in serious trouble. Charles Leclerc even came close to putting his car into the wall. Here is the full summary and all the results from qualifying at Lusail.
Q1 summary: multiple track limits, Hamilton in deep trouble
The session began with all drivers heading out on the soft tyre compound. Carlos Sainz was the first to set a representative time, but after the opening runs it was Oscar Piastri who moved to the top of the timesheets with a 1:20.739, ahead of George Russell, Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen. Lando Norris sat only in sixth place, while both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc struggled badly and were temporarily in the elimination zone.
Leclerc and Hamilton managed to climb to sixth and eighth respectively, but the track continued to improve with every lap. Max Verstappen briefly returned to first place, only to be pushed down again by Norris and then by Piastri, who held an advantage of three tenths. The Ferraris sank back into dangerous territory once more.
The final attempts were chaotic. Lewis Hamilton was eliminated again, this time in eighteenth position, a result that is no longer even surprising given his recent form. The real shock came from Yuki Tsunoda, who dropped out despite an excellent Sprint earlier in the weekend. Russell ended Q1 with the fastest time, a 1:20.074, ahead of the two McLarens and Verstappen, who had to make a correction at the final corner during his lap.
Eliminated in Q1: Tsunoda, Ocon, Hamilton, Stroll, Colapinto
Q2 summary: Piastri delivers an incredible lap on used tyres
Oliver Bearman, Charles Leclerc and the two Sauber drivers were the first to set times in Q2. Strategies varied widely, with some drivers — including Leclerc — going out on used softs. Verstappen jumped to the top of the leaderboard, cutting three tenths from his best Q1 time with a 1:20.142. But Oscar Piastri immediately raised the bar, becoming the first driver to lap below the 1:20 barrier. His astonishing 1:19.650 on used tyres left Verstappen (on fresh tyres) and Norris (whose lap was deleted) half a second behind.
After the opening runs, Charles Leclerc found himself outside the top ten. Meanwhile, Pierre Gasly and Oliver Bearman were producing an excellent qualifying performance up to that point.
The final laps were extremely tense. Norris needed a clean lap to reach Q3 — and he delivered, moving up to second place, just two tenths behind Piastri. Verstappen chose to remain in the garage for the rest of the session. In the elimination zone, Kimi Antonelli managed to jump up to fifth place, securing his spot in Q3. Charles Leclerc scraped through by only 10 thousandths of a second over Nico Hulkenberg.
Eliminated in Q2: Hulkenberg, Lawson, Bearman, Bortoleto, Albon
Q3 summary: massive scare for Charles Leclerc, McLaren put on a show
During the first runs, Lando Norris set the benchmark with a superb 1:19.495, just 35 thousandths ahead of Oscar Piastri. Russell placed behind the McLaren duo, followed by Verstappen. Charles Leclerc, on used tyres, suffered a dramatic and dangerous spin exiting the penultimate corner, completing a full 360-degree moment that nearly put him into the wall. The session was halted for a few minutes with a red flag due to a piece of debris lost from Carlos Sainz’s car.
The final attempt was pure drama. Charles Leclerc had no new soft sets left and was forced to run on used tyres, while all his rivals mounted fresh rubber. Oscar Piastri delivered a spectacular final lap to secure pole position. Lando Norris made an error on his last attempt and had to settle for second place. Right behind them, Max Verstappen produced an excellent lap to take third, beating George Russell by just 11 thousandths of a second. Leclerc ended the session down in tenth place.
