A nimble but not very exciting race was won by Max Verstappen in Qatar, while behind him, Lando Norris practically opened the constructors' championship to the last race with his mistake.
George Russell started well, but Max Verstappen reacted even better and immediately took the lead. Lando Norris almost fooled both of them in third and after two corners he was already fighting for first place, but Verstappen repelled his attack. In the back regions Franco Colapinto and Esteban Ocon found each other, which first led to a yellow flag and then to a safety car phase. The second Williams was also not doing too well, Alexander Albon was spun by Lance Stroll, but at least he was able to continue the race. Nico Hülkenberg's attempt was rewarded with a puncture...
The restart was successful for Verstappen, there were no major changes behind him, only Oscar Piastri managed to gain positions. As the race started with fireworks, in the middle it leveled out so much that the field stabilized. Verstappen, Norris, Russell, two Ferraris and the rest… We saw battles and mistakes only in the rear regions, but even those did not raise the pulse too much. Pit stops could have come, but Russell spoiled them very much, and thus practically eliminated himself from further battles. His place and chances for the podium were taken by the Scuderia Ferrari pilots, who presented themselves with good tire handling and one-pit stop tactics.
A serious problem caused Alexander Albon's mirror to break off and remain in the middle of the home straight, causing a series of punctures... Another safety car followed, another restart, during which Verstappen made a mistake on unheated tyres, which Norris should have easily overtaken. However, this did not work, so the order remained the same as before. However, another SC and more drama came... Norris received a penalty for not taking into account the yellow flag section, and ten seconds meant that scoring points became difficult for the Briton. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri were in the first places and this order did not change until the finish.
