Christian Horner: "That was another masterclass from Max. He was focused and in control throughout the race, his management of the tyres in that first stint was exceptional. I think the Team did a wonderful job in turning around and delivering a car that Max could really put his stamp on. It was a shame to lose out on Pole but if anything it gave Max more determination and motivation to lead into turn 1, it was an unbelievable performance by Max and the Team. Full credit to the engineering staff for making some big decisions and unlocking the potential of the car here, it meant Max had Lando covered throughout the race. It was a little bit crazy here with the punctures but the Team reacted and dealt with everything that came their way, the crew and everybody did a super job."
George Russell finished P4 while Lewis Hamilton crossed the line P12. Both cars unfortunately lost positions at the start with George dropping from P1 to P3 and Lewis losing out from P6 to P9.
Unfortunately, a slow stop for George on lap 24 resulted in him losing an additional three places and from there he struggled to make gains due to the shortened DRS zone despite pushing hard.
Lap 35 saw a front left puncture for Lewis after running over debris on the main straight. This forced him to box on lap 36 when he also served his five second penalty for a false start. A drive through penalty was also handed to Lewis following a failure to activate the pitlane speed limiter behind the Safety Car. He served this on lap 48. Additionally, George landed a five second time penalty at the end of the race for a safety car delta infringement. This didn't impact his P4 result.
The Team's attention now turns to the final race of the season next weekend in Abu Dhabi.
Toto Wolff, Team Principal & CEO: Today we ultimately didn't have the pace. Our car is a handful to drive on its worst days and today was one of those days and both drivers had a similar experience. I think if the race had been yesterday then we would have had a shot at winning but today we just didn't have the speed behind Lando and Max. The car was supper difficult for both Lewis and George to drive, we had a lot of understeer and both of them suffered from that. We started to lose ground from those ahead of us and that's when we decided to box George and hopefully put us in a better situation. Unfortunately, we suffered a slow stop, then ended up in traffic and struggled to make it back through. Then with Lewis we had the false start and pit lane speeding which impacted further on his race along with the lack of pace.
We have one more to go and we will continue to give it our utmost. We will celebrate the relationship and partnership we have had with Lewis and these difficult races will be forgotten quickly. We have had an amazing partnership with Lewis that's spanned over twelve years with six driver titles and eight constructors' titles won together, and these are the things which we will hold dearly.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director: That was a difficult evening for the team. The underlying picture was that the car balance was very different to yesterday's Sprint - and both drivers were limited with severe understeer in the opening stint, and lacking pace relative to the cars around us. However, we made too many other errors to earn strong finishing positions, and we were ultimately fortunate to salvage P4 with George thanks to retirements or problems for cars ahead of him.
It's a valuable lesson in how quickly things can turn from a week ago in Las Vegas, and we have seen these kinds of performance oscillations for all teams at various points this season. There's plenty for us to learn in order to improve, and we will be focused on doing so as we prepare for the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi - and what we hope will be a fitting farewell for Lewis.
Scuderia Ferrari HP now head to the final round of the season in Abu Dhabi next week, in the hunt for the Constructors' world championship title. On a track that the team feared would not suit it, Charles Leclerc finished second in a race that saw little overtaking but plenty of high drama and tension. Carlos Sainz was unlucky, clawing his way back to sixth at the flag after suffering a puncture at half distance. The team therefore picked up 35 points this weekend - 26 today, 9 in yesterday's Sprint bringing the gap to McLaren down from 24 to 21 points, while there are 44 up for grabs at Yas Marina. This is the first time since 2012 that Ferrari is in with a shot at the title at the very last round. The team was fully focussed in today's race and was able to deal with moments of great difficulty. Carlos did a great job on track, completing a full lap with one wheel dragging on the ground, trying to lose as little time as possible. As for Charles, at every restart, he had to fend off the attentions of Piastri, who was more able to get his tyres up to temperature.
The first part of the race was all about tyre management. Charles managed to pass Oscar Piastri after the start to go fourth, but at the restart after the first lap Safety Car, following a crash at the back of the field, the McLaren driver retook the position. At this point, Carlos opted to think mainly of looking after his Medium tyres, as he found himself unable to overtake the cars ahead of him. This paid off when George Russell ran into difficulty and had to make his tyre stop on lap 23, which meant Carlos had a clear track ahead of him. Piastri pitted on lap 34 and on the next lap, Carlos and Lewis Hamilton both picked up punctures: the Spaniard did well to lose as little time as possible, having to limp round to the pits, rejoining on Hard tyres in tenth place. Shortly after, the Safety Car was sent out to allow debris to be cleared away from the main straight and all the front runners still on track took advantage of it. At this point Leclerc managed to pass Piastri for third place, while Carlos moved up to eighth. There were two restarts in close succession and in both cases, Charles did very well to fend off the McLaren, while Carlos was up to seventh after Sergio Perez retired. The final drama came in the form of a ten second stop & go penalty for Lando Norris for failing to slow down under the yellow flags at turn 1, just before the first Safety Car on lap 35. It meant the Englishman dropped back, so that Charles finished second, to secure his twelfth podium of the season, the 20th for the team, while Carlos crossed the line in sixth place.
As from tomorrow, the team heads from Qatar to the United Arab Emirates to start preparing for the final round of the season. Scuderia Ferrari HP arrives in Yas Marina as the underdog as even a one-two finish on Sunday might not be enough to clinch the title, but the team will be doing everything in its power to go against the odds. Why not believe in it?
Fred Vasseur: The most important thing today is that we scored more points than McLaren. We are now 21 points behind, with one race to go which means everything is possible. We have also increased our lead over Red Bull, which means in Abu Dhabi we can focus more on the team in front of us.
The race today was a bit chaotic, but overall, it was a good one for us: we executed it well, the pace was there and I'm very pleased with the job we did today. It was in our plan that the drivers would not push too hard for the first laps in order to push more later on and we were confident we had the pace on the Hard to push until the end.
We have some regrets, such as Carlos' puncture which came at the very worst place, as he had to drive a full lap before pitting and it cost us one or two positions.
Now we go to Abu Dhabi, which on paper, should be a better circuit for us and with Max and Mercedes on the pace, you never know what could happen in the championship battle. We will push flat out to the final chequered flag.
Andrea Stella - Team Principal : "The positives from today's race are that we had a very strong car, and we were in contention for the victory. Oscar drove a solid race but was unlucky with the timing of the Safety Car, which dropped him behind Leclerc, but that's the way it goes sometimes in racing. Lando was very fast, and the way he clawed his way back into the points after the penalty was impressive. It isn't the result we wanted overall, but it is what we have.
"Regarding the main incident of the race, the sector appeared to go yellow just as Lando entered it - but the requirements are clear, you need to lift and it's the responsibility of the drivers to recognise they are in a yellow sector and back off. However, for the future, we would recommend that the FIA considers that proportionality and specificity should be guaranteed in any penalties that are applied.
"Moving on from that, we now go to Abu Dhabi. We remain focused and determined to finish the job as a team."
Mike Krack, Team Principal: "An action-packed Qatar Grand Prix where we scored six important points with a strong seventh place for Fernando. It was a race where our patience paid off with good strategy. It is such a shame that Lance was forced to retire early because he surely would have scored points as well. Lance's car got caught up in the busy first lap battles and there was contact with Alex Albon, which looked to be a racing incident from our perspective. Lance reported feeling something strange with the car, which was impacting performance, and we retired the car soon after that. It's onwards now to Abu Dhabi, the final race of the season, where we will look to score more points and end the year on a high note."
Oliver Oakes, Team Principal: "It was a well-managed and well executed race by the entire team today to score ten points in fifth place with Pierre. For Esteban he was caught in a Turn 1 incident, which was not his fault. The race was incredibly fast paced with a lot of action up and down the field. Pierre did well to stay in the pack in the hunt for points early on and then benefitted with the timing of the Safety Car, like many others, for his mandatory stop. He did an even better job to keep Carlos [Sainz] at bay for fifth place all while managing the tyres and doing some fuel saving. Importantly, we go to the season ending race in sixth place in the Constructors' Championship with a small advantage and the target has to be to remain in that position."
Sven Smeets, Sporting Director: A difficult evening for the team today. At the race start we immediately lost Franco as he was hit by Ocon who in turn was hit by Hulkenberg. There was nothing Franco could do other than to retire in lap 1. After a few laps it was clear that with Alex we had to change our strategy and decided to run as long as possible. When the Safety Car came out because some cars were having punctures, we decided to put Alex on the Soft tyre and not onto the Hard. We knew it was a gamble but at one point we were running up in 9th place. Unfortunately, our decision didn't pay off today and Alex had to make another stop just before the end. A tough day for the team again but we are going to Abu Dhabi to fight for points in the last race of the season.
Tim Goss (Chief Technical Officer): "A disappointing day for us today. Both drivers performed well at the start and to put us in a strong position to deliver a points finish. But just as in the Sprint, it soon became apparent that we were well short of our usual race pace at this circuit and struggled to defend our place in the points. Our engineers and strategy team did their best to recover the situation, even trying the Option tyre compound for the final part of the race. We have plenty of data to work through and the technical team won't rest until we understand why we struggled today. We will put every effort into delivering a much better race car for the drivers to compete with in Abu Dhabi."
Laurent Mekies (Team Principal): "It's been a very difficult weekend in terms of our performance level, right from practice on Friday. It is clear that we never had the pace we needed around this track. With the whole field being so close, if you are just a few tenths off your optimal level, you drop down the order significantly.
"However, no time on track is wasted and we will learn from this event, lessons that will be useful, not only for Abu Dhabi in a few days time, but at this point of the season, even in terms of next year.
"As for our championship aspirations, it's clear that while we made a step forward in recent races, it coincided with our two rivals for sixth place doing the same, with our former driver Pierre Gasly showing us no mercy today!
"Now our thoughts switch to Abu Dhabi, where everyone in the team at the track and the factory will be working hard to end this first year as Visa Cash App RB in the best way possible."
At the Qatar Grand Prix, Zhou Guanyu delivered a standout performance, achieving a career-best eighth-place finish and earning KICK Sauber F1 Team their first points of the season. Zhou demonstrated exceptional composure and skill, navigating two safety car periods and intense midfield battles with precise overtakes and consistent pace. His performance was a testament to his growth as a driver and his ability to capitalise on opportunities in challenging conditions.
Valtteri Bottas also showcased a strong drive, maintaining competitive pace in the midfield and executing several impressive overtakes despite dealing with a damaged floor that hindered his chances of finishing in the points. Both drivers were supported by the team's flawless pit stops, which played a critical role in maximising their race potential.
This result highlighted Zhou's career milestone and Valtteri's resilience, underlining the team's ability to challenge the midfield and setting a promising tone for the remainder of the season.
Alessandro Alunni Bravi, Team Representative: "Today has been a significant day in Doha for our team. Zhou's P8 is a result that means a lot to us and reflects the immense effort of our people in Hinwil, those here trackside, and our shareholders. It was a challenging race where every detail mattered. Zhou drove superbly, managing his tyres well and staying in control, while our strategy change to extend his stint and pit under the Safety Car on lap 35 proved decisive. His strong pace on hard tyres secured this important result for him and the team. Valtteri also contributed strongly to our result, finishing just outside the points in P11. His early stop allowed us to gather crucial data on the hard tyres, benefiting Zhou's strategy. Unfortunately, he was pushed off by Lawson at the restart, which caused damage to his floor and cost us, effectively, the chance of a double points finish. We're grateful to all our partners and Ferrari for their support. There's still a lot of work ahead for us, but if we continue with this intensity, we can look forward to a bright future."
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team finished with Kevin Magnussen ninth - scoring two points, while Nico Hulkenberg retired, at the Qatar Grand Prix, Round 23 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, held Sunday at the Lusail International Circuit.
Magnussen took the start from 10th place on Pirelli P Zero Yellow medium tires but lost a place on a frantic opening lap. Magnussen swiftly regrouped and passed Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda, before resisting Pierre Gasly, holding ninth place through the opening stint. Magnussen pitted on lap 27 for White hard tires but the deployment of the Safety Car five laps later aided rivals who had yet to pit - the neutralization minimizing their time loss.
Magnussen dropped to 11th position but profited when Lando Norris was handed a stop-go penalty, and then passed Alex Albon at Turn 1 to move back into ninth position. Magnussen maintained the position through to the checkered flag, marking MoneyGram Haas F1 Team's ninth time in the points across the last 10 races.
Hulkenberg started from 18th on the grid on hards but his prospects of progressing were stymied after being caught up in a first-lap clash with Franco Colapinto and Esteban Ocon. Hulkenberg sustained a rear-left puncture and pitted for a fresh set of hard tires, re-joining at the rear of the field.
Hulkenberg made up a couple of places before pitting on lap 32 for medium tires, and took the restart in 14th position. Hulkenberg strived to make gains at the restart on lap 40 but spun through turn 9 and beached the VF-24 in the gravel, bringing his race to an early conclusion.
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team sits seventh in the Constructors' Championship, on 54 points - the team currently five points in arrears to Alpine (59) heading into the season finale in Abu Dhabi next Sunday.
Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: "Today, with Nico coming from P18 it was always going to be difficult, and unfortunately, we didn't get anything. Kevin, from his side, drove well again but we just didn't get the philosophy right. He was unlucky with the safety car, but we could've covered ourselves a bit better than we did today. The good thing is the deficit is only five points and in Abu Dhabi we really need to focus on getting both of our drivers into points-scoring positions. P8, and P9 - that's six points - so it's still all to play for, we need to learn from our mistakes, regroup and focus on doing our best in Abu Dhabi to try and get P6 back."
Max Verstappen took his ninth win of the season at the end of what was a dramatic Qatar Grand Prix, especially the second half. The Dutchman took the lead going into the first corner after the start, passing George Russell (Mercedes) and from then on he stayed in front all the way to the chequered flag. Joining him on the podium were Charles Leclerc second for Ferrari and Oscar Piastri third for McLaren.
This was the 63rd win of Verstappen's career, the second out of three editions of this Grand Prix, while for Red Bull it was win number 122. Piastri took his tenth podium finish today from 45 race starts.
All the drivers opted to start on the Medium tyre with the exception of Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) who went for the Hard. As expected, the one-stop was the preferred choice for all teams. Apart from those drivers involved in collisions on the opening lap, who had to pit immediately, everyone tried to extend the first stint on the Mediums as much as possible, getting to over half-distance. There were a few exceptions: George Russell (Mercedes) pitted after 23 laps, Valtteri Bottas switched to the Hard on the following lap and Kevin Magnussen (Haas), pitting after 27 laps. For the rest of the field, the run of pit stops began on lap 34, some coming in when the race was neutralised, to switch to the Hard tyre. Hulkenberg had already pitted to take on Mediums after lap 30.
The Safety Car made three appearances. At the last two, the chance to pit costing less time, induced Williams and Racing Bulls to gamble on the Soft, but it did not pay off, as the characteristics of this track meant the C3 proved to have too much of a drop in performance.
Mario Isola: "As expected, this was a very busy weekend for us. In today's race there were two front left tyre punctures on Sainz's and Hamilton's cars. As per procedure, we will now analyse in detail the damaged tyres, as well as a selection of other tyres. Along with the telemetry data we have acquired and on-board footage from the cars, they will be sent to our laboratory in Milan. In addition, we will carry out all the usual checks on the stresses to which the tyres were subjected.
"This track has some rather peculiar characteristics: it is very severe in terms of the energy exerted on the tyres and in terms of tread wear, while not leading to a drop in performance. Clearly, this combination of factors can create a situation in which wear levels reach their limit, while the teams however try to lengthen the stint as much as possible in order to get the best possible result and we saw that confirmed today.
"In yesterday's Sprint, in some cases the level of wear had reached 100% on cars that had started with about one third the fuel load they took on board for today's start. At this track, the left front is the tyre subjected to the greatest load and it's no coincidence that both punctures were on this tyre. When you reach a certain level, then even the smallest piece of debris can cause a situation like the one we witnessed today.
"As for the rest, the performance levels of the most used compounds - the C1 and the C2 - were very similar and, as mentioned earlier, with hardly any degradation. Therefore, the level of tyre management required was practically zero, with the drivers able to push as much as they liked, even though they were in fact running a one-stop strategy."
