Oscar Piastri won the Qatar Grand Prix sprint race, narrowing Lando Norris’s championship lead to 22 points with a commanding drive from pole.
Oscar Piastri strengthened his push for a first world title with a dominant sprint race win at the Qatar Grand Prix, cutting McLaren team-mate Lando Norris’s lead to 22 points. The Australian controlled the 19-lap dash from pole, finishing 4.951 seconds ahead of George Russell, with Norris third and Max Verstappen fourth. It marked Piastri’s first victory since the Dutch Grand Prix in August and his third consecutive sprint win in Qatar, prompting him to say, “It’s been good so far and everything went smoothly.”
Norris, who still has a chance to clinch the title on Sunday, said he paid no attention to Verstappen behind him: “I never saw him… I wasn’t looking behind.” While Verstappen complained that “I’m constantly jumping, not only bouncing,” Piastri remained in full control as the field ran on medium tyres with little close racing under the Lusail floodlights.