The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix is the penultimate race of the season, and as seen during qualifying, has the makings to be a brilliant and closely contested race. Just one single race remains post this night safari and that’s the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. And it is very likely that here in the beating heart of Doha, the driver’s championship could be dealt a decisive strike. So what is it going to be under bright lights at the exceptionally captivating Lusail International Circuit, a paradigm of modern, fast-paced design? Who will come up trumps at one of Formula 1’s very new or recent venues where back in 2021, lest we forget, a certain Fernando Alonso, the El Niño of Formula 1 (as also its Samurai) captured a valiant P3 and that too, in an Alpine? Let us, without much ado, delve into the key possibilities at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix:
An action packed Qatar GP up ahead for Carlos Sainz
He captured a fighting, hugely respectable and brilliant P3 in qualifying at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, which was also the very venue of a disappointing first ever outcome in red where as a Ferrari driver, the Madrid-born would run over a manhole gap on the very racing track and that too, in the first-ever installation of the Las Vegas Grand Prix (Free Practice 1, circa 2023). But this time around, Sainz, begins the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix from seventh, which isn’t too bad considering he is just behind three of the fastest cars out there, including McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes. Surely, Hadjar’s maiden season invincibility is a thing to factor in there, isn’t it? But then the penultimate race of the season could well be a brilliant one for the Spanish talent who will likely put together a strong, if also, action-packed Grand Prix riddled with closely contested moments, and ultimately, something for Williams to record with much gusto. After a DNF at Mexico and a low key P13 at Interlagos, Carlos Sainz Jr. has risen back sharply to beat the hugely underrated Alex Albon as seen as Las Vegas and now, the qualifying at the Qatar GP.
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Max Verstappen will not win the race
The driver with the most race wins here? Max Verstappen. The driver responsible for making his Constructor, a certain Red Bull dominate the Qatar Grand Prix? Max Verstappen. Who will win the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix? Truth be told, might not be Max Verstappen. The Dutch driver, already a four-time world champion would love to, sorry, would absolutely love to smash the two McLarens on his way to a checkered flag. But today is not that day (or so it seems). A visibly resurgent Oscar Piastri who entered Qatar with 367 points, the exact number as Max Verstappen (who forget not is the defending world champion) has raised his game and how!
The pressure, therefore, was always going to be on the Australian driver to pick himself up and deliver and he has responded. In what lies ahead, in all likelihood, the 24-year-old will take full control of his brilliant pole position and will pull out a rabbit in the hat in that he will somehow find a way to curb Norris’ charge from behind, who in turn, will come under some pressure from the Flying Dutchman in this possibly crazy, hugely exciting 2025 Qatar Grand Prix.
One of the two McLarens shall paint the Doha skies in Papaya colour
7 of his 11 career wins in Formula 1 have happened this year. Moreover, just to give evidence of his imposing form this season, Lando Norris has also claimed 17 podiums in 2025 alone. That’s an average finish position of 2.11 per race. If that’s not phenomenal, not that the Briton’s trollers can even understand the word, then what is? But having said that, the man who entered Qatar as the driver out in the lead of the championship does have a clear task to perform. And that’s to overtake the pole sitter, his teammate, Oscar Piastri. After bouncing back strongly from a string of disappointing, heartbreaking, and borderline depressing race results, the young Australian, not only clinched the victory in sprint but set a ballsy lap time to take pole under the bright lights of Doha.
The Victoria, Melbourne-born Oscar Piastri begins his 2025 Qatar Grand Prix with a brilliant 1:19:387, thus edging out his teammate by just 0.108 seconds. That’s about it. But in the next few hours, one thing is certain. No prizes for guessing what that is? One of the two McLarens will emerge in the clear and take the victory in what could be an action packed, perhaps even an accident-fuelled Grand Prix where the stakes are as high as Qatar’s vision to usurp its rivals as a premier economic powerhouse in the region.
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