Formula 1 | Norris returns Sprint victory to Piastri, McLaren F1 moves closer to title

The first points will be awarded as part of the Qatar Grand Prix, during the F1 Sprint which takes place this afternoon. The sixth and final Sprint of the season takes place on the Losail circuit, and it will have a crucial role in the fight for the constructors' title.

Lando Norris starts from pole ahead of George Russell and Oscar Piastri, while Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz follow in fourth and fifth position. As it stands, McLaren would regain some air in the championship in its quest for the world title.

Max Verstappen is sixth on the grid ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly, then Nico Hülkenberg and Liam Lawson. Alpine, Haas and RB F1 fighting for sixth place, this fight will also be very important for the manufacturers' classification.

Fernando Alonso is 11th ahead of Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, Lance Stroll and Kevin Magnussen. Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon and Guanyu Zhou will complete the grid on which 18 drivers will start.

Indeed, Sergio Pérez and Franco Colapinto, qualified 16th and 20th, decided to change the suspension settings and start from the pit lane. For Red Bull and Williams, this is a first job before the opening of the Parc Fermé between the Sprint and qualifying.

Note that Pérez and Tsunoda received reprimands for being too slow during an untimed lap in Qualif Sprint, but the FIA ​​was lenient and only issued reprimands to the two drivers.

14h56 : Confirmation that the conditions are much more reasonable than in 2023, the air temperature is 21 degrees, and that of the track is 26 degrees.

14h58 : Zhou opted for soft tyres, the rest of the drivers are on medium tyres.

Departure : Very good start from Norris and especially from Piastri who manages to pass Russell on the outside at the exit of the first corner! The two McLarens are in the lead, while Leclerc missed his start, losing two places to Sainz and Leclerc.

Tour 1 : Verstappen also missed his start and found himself ninth out of the points. Hülkenberg and Gasly overtook him, while Lawson was pushed back to the second part of the peloton.

Tour 2 : Tsunoda overtakes Colapinto while Pérez remains last. He was overtaken in the pit lane at the start, Colapinto having been more reactive at the green light.

Tour 3 : Norris set the best lap in the race in 1'25″961, and the McLarens were the only cars to lap under 26 minutes. However, Russell remained in Piastri's wake.

Tour 4 : Piastri beats the race record in 1'25″890, and Russell did better in 1'25″803. Russell attacks Piastri but the Australian keeps second place, allowing Sainz to get back to a second. Russell complains that Piastri pointed at him.

Tour 5 : Sainz sets the best lap in 1'25″747 and returns to Russell's DRS zone. The whole leading group begins to regroup behind Norris, who has lost a little pace.

Tour 6 : The first five drivers are within 3 seconds, and Leclerc is not far away.

Tour 7 : Best lap in the race for Hamilton in 1'25″665, but the Briton was immediately beaten by Leclerc in 1'25″522. Norris explains that he is trying to give Piastri the DRS so he doesn't get attacked by Russell.

Tour 8 : Tsunoda, Colapinto and Pérez overtook Zhou, whose soft tires were already suffering, since he was running in 1'30″1, compared to 1'27″3 for Tsunoda.

Tour 9 : Russell attacks Piastri again, but the Australian stays ahead. Verstappen beats the best lap in the race in 1'25″224, but he is still 1″7 behind Hülkenberg.

Tour 10 : Leclerc set the best lap in 1'25″110. Zhou returned to the pits after losing several seconds due to his soft tires.

Tour 11 : Norris tries to accelerate the pace to 1'25″067, and to take Piastri with him. But the Gap widens between the McLarens, with almost a second of margin.

Tour 12 : Norris set the best lap in the race in 1'24″916, beaten by Sainz in 1'24″904. McLaren informed Norris that Piastri was still under threat from Russell, and that's why the leader accelerated.

Tour 13 : Norris again beats the best time in 1'24″744, but Russell did better in 1'24″555. Leclerc attacks Hamilton who defends, and the future teammates pass three corners side by side before the Monegasque takes fifth place. A superb battle within the rules.

Tour 14 : Norris accelerates more and more with a lap in 1'24″329. Russell attacks Piastri who is outside Norris' DRS zone, but the Australian shifts and closes the door. Verstappen passed Gasly for eighth place.

Tour 15 : Pérez in turn stopped for a front wing change, certainly for full-scale tests, while Norris had difficulties with his tires. The Brit asks what he should do, and his team tells him to save money and help Piastri.

Tour 16 : The four leading drivers are within 2″5, and Leclerc is 3 seconds behind Sainz. Hamilton is one second behind his future teammate, and Hülkenberg is less than three seconds behind the Briton. Verstappen remains 1″6 behind the Haas.

Tour 17 : Piastri is now six tenths behind Norris, and Russell is six tenths behind Piastri, while Sainz is seven tenths behind the Mercedes.

Tour 18 : Leclerc signs the best lap in 1'24″203 but he is still more than two and a half seconds behind Sainz. In the lead, the gaps increased in this penultimate lap.

Last round: Leclerc set the best lap of the race in 1'23″923, while Russell tried in vain to attack Piastri. The classification should no longer change between now and the finish, Norris having fulfilled the role of aspiration and of DRS for Piastri.

Arrival : Norris lets Piastri pass to give him the Sprint victory in Brazil! It is therefore the Australian who wins the Qatar Sprint ahead of Norris and Russell, who finishes 0″274 behind Piastri. Sainz is fourth ahead of Leclerc, Hamilton, Hülkenberg and Verstappen.

McLaren scores 15 points and Ferrari nine points, bringing the gap to 30 points between the two teams in favor of McLaren. The Woking team could seal the constructors' world title from tomorrow's race, provided they score another 15 points more than the Scuderia.