Oscar Piastri emerged victorious in Qatar in a last-second position switchover by the McLaren duo. Norris, who led every lap of the F1 Sprint race at the 2024 Qatar GP, conceded the win to Piastri after they turned the final corner, after helping keep the Aussie out of the clutches of Mercedes’ George Russell in P3.
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Russell, who lost P2 to Piastri at the start, put up a good fight for that second-place position, putting the straight-line speed of the Mercedes to good use. In the end, Piastri emerged ahead of the Mercedes due to a bit of help from Norris, who kept within a second of the young Aussie to help his straight line speed.
It was yet another race to forget for Red Bull; Max Verstappen, straight off the back of his World Championship victory last weekend, lost three places at the start after being hindered by oversteer. The Dutchman made one place back to come home in P8. His teammate Sergio Pérez had yet another terrible result. After a slow start from the pit lane which saw youngster Franco Colapinto overtake him before the first corner, his race turned into another practice session. Unable to make any progress, the team pulled him into the pits to change his front wing and gather more data ahead of the rest of the weekend’s sessions.
McLaren’s 1-2 in the F1 Sprint race at the 2024 Qatar GP saw them eek out more points ahead of Ferrari in a bid to win the Constructors Championship. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finished in P4 and P5 respectively.
As it Happened
A good getaway by Norris was tailed by the first tussle of the day between Piastri and Russell, seeing Piastri snatch that all-important P2. Sainz was into fourth, Hamilton edging ahead of Leclerc to split the Ferraris.
Verstappen, meanwhile, was down to P9; three places lower than has starting position after being compromised by the Ferraris and suffering from oversteer. Another biggest loser at the start was the Williams of Alex Albon, also down three places. However, it was a nightmare start for rookie Liam Lawson, down seven places. Over in the pit lane, Franco Colapinto was out and past a napping Pérez at the green light.
As the race unfolded, Russell was hot on Piastri’s tail, trying to sneak down the inside at Turn 1 on Lap 3 – but the McLaren’s higher downforce aided Piastri in staying ahead. Norris, however, was 1.1s clear out front. Piastri and Russell continued to be embroiled in a scrap, Mercedes’ straight line speed proving a nuisance to the McLaren – and Russell had the fastest lap to prove it. However, Russell would soon have to contend with the Ferrari of Sainz behind, who crept into DRS on the Brit by Turn 5 on Lap 6.
Norris Helps Out
In a bid to keep the 1-2 alive, Norris began hanging back slightly to aid Piastri – by remaining within a second of the second McLaren, Piastri was gifted DRS, keeping him out of the clutches of Russell.
Leclerc had dropped back to two seconds behind Hamilton in P6 by Lap 7. However, the two were soon wheel-to-wheel as Hamilton’s pace slowed slightly. The two future teammates touch after a late overtake by Leclerc down the main straight, remaining about half an inch apart the entire way round Turns 1-2, Leclerc remerging victorious as the race reached the halfway point.
Piastri was still hanging on, having gained and lost DRS down the main straight. Russell was unhappy with a couple of late moves into Turn 1, complaining on the radio about the young Aussie. Norris out front had slowed back down, letting his teammate back into DRS after the team radioed to “please help Oscar”.
Pérez Gathers Data
Pérez, having failed to make any progress from his nightmare start, was in for a pit stop to change front wing. The Red Bull’s race had turned into a testing session with no opportunities for points on the table.
In the penultimate laps, Piastri’s position a car length ahead of Russell proved crucial, allowing Piastri to hang onto P2 by the skin of his teeth. Norris was slowing up again, keeping his teammate in DRS as they approached the chequered flag.
In a last-second switch up, it was Piastri who reached the chequered flag first after Norris conceeded the win to his teammate. The decision, made by Norris, was a way of making up for Piastri’s sacrifice of a win at the last sprint in Brazil, where he obeyed team orders to let Norris through in a bid to keep his Drivers’ Championship alive. With the Drivers’ Championship sealed, Norris opted to give a win back to the young Aussie, albeit in a risky move.
McLaren have now increased their lead in the Constructors’ Championship battle with Ferrari, with more points at stake tomorrow in the race.