Qatar Grand Prix 2025-Live report
George Cooper (for assignment purposes)
Pre-Race
The Lusail International Circuit in Qatar has quickly established itself as one of Formula 1’s most demanding venues. Originally built for MotoGP, the 5.4‑kilometre track features 16 corners and a long main straight that encourages overtaking, especially with DRS. The layout is dominated by sweeping medium‑ and high‑speed bends, which test driver precision and punish tyre wear. Racing under floodlights adds to the spectacle, with cooler evening conditions contrasting against the desert heat and sand that can blow across the surface. Gravel strips introduced this year make track limits unforgiving, ensuring even small mistakes can prove costly.
Tyre choice will be crucial here. The medium compound offers the best balance of pace and durability, while the hard tyre is essential for stretching stints under Pirelli’s 25‑lap limit per set. The soft compound, although quick in qualifying, is too fragile for race distance and is expected to play only a minor role. Managing tyre wear through the long corners will be just as important as outright speed, with strategy set to shape the outcome.
Due to arid conditions, there is a potential for gravel on the track, which could cause punctures in soft and medium compound tyres.
The run down the main straight into Turn 1 is the prime overtaking zone, with drivers braking hard from top speed and often going wheel‑to‑wheel. Turn 6 can tempt a risky dive, while Turn 12 occasionally opens the door for late moves if momentum is carried through the corner. The two DRS zones — on the main straight and the back straight — provide extra chances, though dirty air through the fast corners makes following a challenge closely.
Even under floodlights, air temperatures hover around 30–32°C, with track temperatures climbing into the mid‑30s. Humidity sits at roughly 60%, increasing the physical strain on drivers, while light desert winds can unsettle cars under braking, particularly into Turn 1. Together, these factors make concentration, tyre management, and bravery in wheel‑to‑wheel battles just as important as raw pace.
30/11/25 15:46pm: Current standings
The championship fight ensures added drama. Lando Norris leads the standings however, Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen are both within striking distance, setting up a genuine three‑way showdown with only two races left.
George Russell remains a consistent presence for Mercedes, while Kimi Antonelli continues to impress with maturity. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is out of contention but remains a threat on race day. With the Constructors’ crown already secured by McLaren, all eyes are on the Drivers’ Championship — and Lusail could prove decisive.
30/11/25 15:49pm: Starting Grid
Pole position belongs to Oscar Piastri, who continues to show his qualifying strength, with teammate Lando Norris lining up alongside him on the front row. Max Verstappen starts third, ready to pounce, while George Russell and rookie Kimi Antonelli form a strong Mercedes presence just behind. Isack Hadjar’s standout performance sees him in sixth, ahead of Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso, Pierre Gasly, and Charles Leclerc rounding out the top ten. With such a competitive grid, the opening laps promise fireworks.
LIVE REPORT:
4:00 PM: Formation Lap. All drivers on medium compound tyres, expecting a 25-lap life span on the tyres. Due to the sheer speed on this track and the risk of gravel, there is an extreme risk of wearing out.
4:02 PM: The expected time on a standard pit stop is 26.3 seconds, meaning drivers are hoping to only stop twice this race.
4:04 PM: All drivers starting from the main straight, apart from Colapinto, who is starting from the pits
4:05 PM First lap, Verstappen takes the lead at turn 2, but Lando is close behind.
4:05 PM: No insistence on the first field. Piastri is still leading on the opening lap.
4:06 PM: Piastri leading with a 1.3-second advantage. Further down the grip, Carlos Saintz has gained two places and is up in the fifth.
4:07 PM: Lecluc has lost his place, and Ferrari is struggling to hold a place.
4:08 PM Piastri is now 1.7 seconds ahead of Verstappen. Leading on the third lap. Leaving Norris 1.8 seconds further back in third.
4:09 PM: DRS is now open and active
4:11 PM: A lot of sparks from Hulkberg’s car, however, no issues with speed as of current.
4:12 PM: On lap Vernstappen, Verstappen complains about balance issues in his car, however, no issues seem to be arising as he has just recorded the fastest lap on the race so far at 1.26 minutes.
4:14 PM: In the top 10 drivers, the only car in the DRS zone is George Russell. Hulkberg has been left stranded and has lost his place.
4:15 PM: Nico Hulkberg is off. This has led to a safety card being deployed. Drivers take this opportunity to go into the pits to switch to medium tyres
4:16 PM: The only team that hasn’t brought their drivers in is McLaren, leading Piastri and Norris to maintain their first and second places.
4:17 PM: Ocon has a penalty of five seconds for making contact with Hulkberg, who is now out of the race.
4:19 PM: McLaren driver, Lando Norris, is questioning why he wasn’t brought in to change tyres.
4:20 PM: Safety car still deployed.
4:20 PM: McLaren is keeping strategy open by not bringing Piastri and Norris in, meaning they have two remaining pit stops at any race. Leaving an advantage over other drivers as they have to change in the early thirties due to the limit of the medium tyre length.
4:21 PM: Safety car goes in, and the race continues.
4:22 PM: Still looks to be debris at turn 2 where Ocon and Hulkberg collided.
4:23 PM: As the twelfth lap ends, Piastri is still leading, leaving Norris 1.332 seconds behind in second and Versnappen 2.260 seconds behind in third.
4:24 PM: Gastri was reviewed for a pentaty, but upon review, there is no further investigation.
4:25 PM: James Vowles at Williams Racing comments on McLaren’s strategy, that bringing both drivers in would lead to a disadvantage later on in the race, regarding traffic when leaving the pits.
4:26 PM: Further in the grid, Leclerc is chasing Russel in eighth place in the Mercedes, only 0.5 seconds behind.
4:28 PM: Lots of talk questioning McLaren’s strategy. Lots of commentators are discussing how, when drivers leave the pit, they’ll be caught in traffic.
4:29 PM: Both McLaren drivers have to come in 9 laps, following the tyre regulations of a 25-lap limit.
4:31 PM: Midway through lap 19, and no leaderboard changes have been made. Piatri is still in first, following Norris and Versnappen.
4:34 PM: McLaren drivers need to make their way to the pits in five laps, and the top drivers will be coming out in sixth and seventh position.
4:36 PM: A lot of talk debating McLaren’s upcoming tyre choices, will they come in to get soft tyres which are predicted to be half a second faster. To help build a lead before going into a harder set of tyres. However, talks on Versnappen leading as he’s already pitted.
4:39 PM: Versnappen has only one more pit stop to do, which will take 26 seconds. However, the McLarens need to take two stops, which will take fifty-two seconds. Meaning the McLaren will have to gain a 2nd a lap to come out close to Versnappen, which is challenging.
4:40 PM: Every is anticipating what tyres Mclaren will put on their cars, many believe soft would be the safer choice.
4:41 PM: Lap 24, looks like Piastri will be pitted.
4:42 PM: Leader is pitted with medium tires. It was a three second stop which is veery slow, Piastri is now 5th place and is seven seconds behind Antonelli in fourth place.
4:43 PM: Norris is pitted at lap 26 and is equipped with medium tyres with a 2.2-second pit stop, faster than his team mate Piastri.
4:44 PM: Lap 26, halfway through and Piastri and Norris are back into play. Versnappen is leading. However, he will need to come in over the next six laps.
4:45 PM: Piastri has just got his fastest lap on his new set of tyres with a time of 1.24.5
4:46 PM: Lance Stroll has a penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
4:47 PM: Piastri is 17 seconds behind Versnappen at lap 28.
4:47 PM: All other teams need to come in at lap 32; this could lead to some chaos in the pits.
4:48 PM: The tyres on all other drivers apart from McLaren are starting to wear.
4:48 PM: If Versnappen comes out now, he’ll be close to Alonso in sixth.
4:49 PM: Fifteen cars due to come in, in two laps, the pits will be carnage.
4:49 PM: Piastri is now up to third as he has overtaken Antonelli.
4:50 PM: Pre-pit top three, Verstappen, Sainz and then Piastri.
4:51 PM: Norris is in the DRS zone. Rebuilding his pace.
4:52 PM: Versnappen is told to go pits asap, he will exit behind McLarens.
4:52 PM: Versnappen is in and out with a pit time of 2.5 seconds stationary, coming out with hard tyres and securing a 3rd place.
4:53 PM: Close collision in the pits, lack of safe releases.
4:55 PM: The top three have regained their positions. However, both McLarens do have to complete their final pit stop. Whilst Versnappen is done with his tyre changes. Leading to believe that Versnappen is 26 ahead when they pit.
4:56 PM: Versnappen and Saintz on hard tyres; however, they’re is an even split between medium and hard tyres.
4:57 PM: Stroll at Aston Martin is on investigation for an unsafe release in the pits.
4:58 PM: Replay of Ollie Bearman running over an object in the pits, leading a major delay in his release. His frustration can be heard over the chaos in the pits.
4:59 PM: Race leader is asking about their strategy. McLaren responded, saying to go flat out instead of waiting for a safety car.
5:00 PM: Piastri is 6.3 seconds ahead of Norris, who is 2.3 seconds ahead of Versnappen.
5:01 PM: Replay shows Norris sliding on gravel, which was warned about.
5:02 PM: Piastri has now cleared, and when pitted, he will come out in third place. He is 26 seconds ahead of fourth place.
5:03 PM: McLaren's best chance to win this race would be a safety car. They aren’t making enough time to pit and come ahead of Max Verstappen with 17 laps left.
5:04 PM: McLaren’s strategy as of current is not looking to be playing off.
5:05 PM: Race leader Piastri said he wants to come in now and chase Versnappen, as he feels it’ll be his best chance of winning.
5:06 PM: Versnappen is just a second behind second-place Norris.
5:07 PM: Debates about the tyre choices of McLaren, is their strategy going to pay off?
5:08 PM: All predications lead to Versnapped winning with Piastri second and Norris third.
5:09 PM: Piastri pitted and equipped a set of hard tyres in hopes of chasing Versnappen.
5:09 PM: To beat Versnappen, Piastri has to go 17.5 seconds in fourteen laps.
5:10 PM: The next 20 minutes of this race are looking to be very predictable, it’s looking like a safe vitory for Red-Bull. However, McLaren does have a chance if a safety car is deployed.
5:11 PM: Norris was pitted and has just left in 6th place with a pit stop of 2 seconds.
5:12 PM: Piastri has cut the 17 seconds to 15.5 seconds. Piastri is closing in on Versnappen.
5:12 PM: Replay just showed two-time world champion Alonso spinning.
5:13 PM: Norris is in 5th place and is looking to chase down Saintz. For Norris, the championship leader, to make third, he has to make up 6 seconds to finish 3rd.
5:14 PM: The gap between Versnappen and Piastri is now 14 seconds.
5:14 PM: However, Piastri isn’t closing in fast enough as we approach the last ten laps.
5:15 PM: McLaren is hoping for a safety car so Piastri will be directly trialling Versnappen.
5:16 PM: Norris is now less than 4 seconds behind Antonelli.
5:16 PM: The last 5 laps with Versnappen are a point of concern. Will the pace keep up?
5:17 PM: Versnappen is a position to contend for the Championship of the last race of the season in Abu Dhabi.
5:18 PM: Lap 50, can Norris pass on the straight?
5:19 PM: Norris failed to overtake, leading most predictions to Norris finishing fourth.
5:19 PM: Norris still can’t get past Antonelli. He seems stuck in fifth.
5:19 PM: Sainz has a technical fault in his car.
5:21 PM: Lando Norris is close to Antonelli. However, McLaren can’t seem to get past Mercedes.
5:21 PM: Current vote split shows Versnappen 29%, Sainz 24% and Piastri 16%
5:23 PM: Current prediction in the overall championship is that Norris will have a 10-point lead over Versnappen and then a 14 lead over Piastri going into the final race of the season.
5:24 PM: Antonelli’s defence is paying off, and it is gaining more time on Sainz.
5:25 PM: Will Antonelli secure third in the last two laps?
5:26 PM: In the last two laps, Norris still can’t get past Antonelli, who has been driving well defensively.
5:26 PM: Puncture on Issac Hadjar in 8th has a puncture in The Race Bull.
5:27 PM: Going into the final lap, Norris has passed Antonelli as Mercedes with a wide. Leading Norris to gain 2 points.
5:28 PM: Versnappen on the last lap of the race, cruising safely in first place.
5:29 PM: Versnappen wins!
5:30 PM: Piastri in second with Sainz in third.
5:30 PM: Leading Norris is disappointed in fourth.
5:30 PM: Norris will have a 16-point lead over Versnappen. Meaning Norris can finish fourth in Abu Dhabi and still win the Championship.
5:31 PM: As the checkered flag falls, the fireworks light up Qatar’s skies.
5:31 PM: Looks like McLaren’s strategy has led them to fumble the race.
5:31 PM: Jr, Carlos Sainz is overjoyed with third, and his father is seen hugging his pit crew.
5:35 PM; That’s it from Qatar Grand-Prix 2025. waiting for the fireworks in the McLaren pit over the failure of their strategy. They have requested no interviews until after the podium.
5:36 PM: “It was a strong race on a very tough weekend for us, but we still won the race” Max Versnappen, first place at the Qatar Grand-Prix.
5:36 PM: “We didn’t get it right, unfortunately, I tried my best, but, there wasn’t anything left for us out there.” Oscar Piastri- second place at the Qatar Grand- Prix “ In heinsight it’s obvious what we would’ve done”