🔗 Share this article Qatar Sprint Race and Main Event Qualifying: Live Coverage Introduction Our correspondent is arriving soon to cover today's sprint race (2pm GMT) and grid-setting session (18:00 GMT). Real-Time Updates Formation Lap Period The warm-up lap has begun. Circuit Details We have nineteen laps around the lengthiest track in F1, David Croft points out. Final Moments The last moments is on. Racer Positions One point in Max Verstappen's favour: his teammate Tsunoda is in front of him by one place. He is unlikely to challenge the team's main man. Interview Updates Sky's internal discussion now: the analyst is with Mercedes. The analyst is looking forward to the 2026 season, interviewing the engineer about his promotion to the team lead role. Grid Details There are only sixteen vehicles on the grid. It was another poor grid-setting session for Lewis Hamilton: following his result of 20th and last in Las Vegas, resulting in an eighth-place finish in the main race, he failed to make it out of the first qualifying segment again on Friday. The team have consequently made changes to his car configuration and so he begins from the pit lane. The team's Stroll and the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the same position. Racer Statements "We take the learning for tomorrow," says Hadjar, starting eleventh. There will be a lot of that. Team Standings It's not all about the drivers' title: The team have run away with the team championship but Mercedes, with a forty-point advantage over their rivals, are aiming to secure the runner-up position this weekend. Russell can help them achieve that from second place, and Kimi Antonelli will begin immediately after the leader. Past Performance Oscar Piastri was victorious then – as he did the previous season, too. The driver from McLaren is attempting a hat-trick. Sprint Race Value Alright, just over twenty minutes remaining till the short race gets under way. Barring disaster, its main importance is as an indication of what is to come, rather than highly important in its itself, with only eight points available to the winner. Mind you, the runner-up spot here was enough for Verstappen to claim the title in a prior season. The driver claimed the championship after his teammate's accident of the short race.