🔗 Share this article Qatar Sprint Race and Grand Prix Grid Setting: Live Updates Preamble Philip is about to begin to guide you through today's short race (2pm GMT) and qualifying (18:00 GMT). Real-Time Updates Starting Lap Time The starting lap is underway. Circuit Details We have 19 laps around the lengthiest track in Formula 1, David Croft points out. Final Moments The final countdown is on. Racer Positions One point in Verstappen's favour: his teammate Tsunoda is ahead of him by a single position. It's improbable to interfere with Red Bull's lead driver. Interview Updates Sky interviewing Sky currently: Gary Neville is at the Mercedes team. Karun Chandhok is jumping ahead to the 2026 season, interviewing the engineer about his stepping up to the team lead role. Starting Positions There are only sixteen vehicles on the grid. It was another poor grid-setting session for the driver: following his result of 20th and last in Las Vegas, resulting in an eighth position in the main race, he did not manage to make it out of Q1 once more on Friday. Ferrari have as a result adjusted to his setup and so he will start from the pit lane. The team's Stroll and the Alpine pair of Gasly and Colapinto are all doing likewise. Driver Comments "We'll use the experience for tomorrow," says Isack Hadjar, starting eleventh. There will be a lot of that. Constructors' Championship It's not all about the individual championship: The team have run away with the team championship but Mercedes, with a 40-point lead over Red Bull, will be hoping to secure the runner-up position this weekend. George Russell can help them achieve that from the front row, and Antonelli will begin immediately after Verstappen. Previous Results Piastri was victorious then – as he did the previous season, too. The driver from McLaren is going for a hat-trick. Short Race Importance Alright, approximately twenty minutes to go until the short race gets under way. Barring disaster, it's greatest value is as an indication of future events, rather than highly important in its own right, with just eight championship points available to the winner. However, the runner-up spot in this race was enough for Verstappen to claim the title two years ago. Max Verstappen wins F1 world title after his teammate's accident of the short race.