Qatar GP 2024: Verstappen wins as a stop-go penalty sinks Norris

Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix at Lusail from second on the grid, 6.031 seconds ahead of Charles Leclerc, after leading every lap of a race that needed three safety cars. Oscar Piastri was third for McLaren. Lando Norris, the only driver who could stay with Verstappen, lost second place to a 10-second stop-go penalty and finished tenth. It was Verstappen's ninth win of 2024, eight days after he sealed his fourth title in Las Vegas.

How Verstappen won the Qatar GP

Verstappen was quickest in qualifying but dropped one place on the grid for driving unnecessarily slowly in front of George Russell in Q3. It changed little. He took the inside line, was past the Mercedes before Turn 1, and Norris followed him through to push Russell back to third.

Behind them the first safety car was already on its way. Nico Hülkenberg, the only driver to start on hard tyres, locked up and hit Esteban Ocon, who was pushed into Franco Colapinto; the Alpine and the Williams were out on the spot. Lance Stroll spun Alex Albon around in the same opening lap and later retired after serving a 10-second penalty.

The race turned around lap 30. A wing mirror fell off Albon's Williams onto the main straight and race control showed yellow flags rather than neutralising the race. Valtteri Bottas then ran over it, Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton picked up front-left punctures, and only then did the safety car come out. Piastri had pitted just before it and lost ground, and Leclerc kept him behind at the restart.

Norris went side by side with Verstappen on that restart and backed out. Sergio Pérez then spun and stopped, saying he had lost drive, and Hülkenberg beached his Haas in the gravel at Turn 9 to bring out the third safety car. During it the stewards gave Norris a 10-second stop-go for failing to slow under the yellows. He rejoined 15th and last, climbed back to tenth and took the extra point for fastest lap. Pierre Gasly finished fifth for Alpine.

The teammate duels at Lusail

McLaren. Norris out-qualified Piastri, third to fourth, and spent the first stint within about 1.8 seconds of Verstappen by the winner's own account. The penalty hands the race verdict to Piastri, third against tenth. Norris still leads their head-to-head 19–4 on Saturdays and 15–8 on Sundays in our count.

Mercedes. Russell lost two places at the start, then a slow first stop dropped him to 11th. He recovered to fourth, and a five-second penalty for a safety car infringement did not cost him the place. Hamilton collected a five-second penalty for a false start, a puncture and a drive-through for speeding in the pit lane. He asked to park the car, was told no, and finished 12th. Russell now leads the Mercedes duel 18–5 in qualifying and 13–6 in races on F1 Duels.

Ferrari. Leclerc beat Sainz on both days, fifth to seventh on the grid and second to sixth at the flag, although the puncture settled Sunday. In their last season as teammates Leclerc leads the count 14–8 and 13–7.

Sauber. Zhou Guanyu started 12th, one place ahead of Bottas, and finished eighth to score the team's first points of the season at the 23rd attempt. Bottas was 11th. It was only Zhou's third qualifying win of the year, and Bottas still leads the pairing 20–3 and 12–8.

Pérez's stop means the Red Bull race column stays at 19–0 for Verstappen in the races we count.

What it means for the constructors' title

The drivers' title was already settled. The constructors' fight is not: Ferrari outscored McLaren by nine points and cut the gap to 21, with 44 still available in Abu Dhabi. McLaren could have clinched its first teams' title since 1998 in Qatar, and Norris's penalty is the main reason it did not. Every verdict from the night is on the Qatar GP duels page.