Hamilton slashes championship gap as former teammate Alonso returns to the Podium in inaugural Qatar Grand Prix.
P1 – HAM
P2 – VER
P3 – ALO
Podium Finishers
Hamilton carried the momentum from Brazil into the Middle East, with a dominating lights-to-flag win on Sunday. After starting from pole position, Hamilton controlled the race, furthering his charge to an eighth world championship title.
Title protagonist Max Verstappen had a respectable race of his own. Verstappen finished P2 despite starting P7 at lights out thanks to a grid drop from an infringement in Saturday’s qualifying. Verstappen claimed the fastest lap of the race, with the additional point surely crucial as we get closer and closer to Abu Dhabi.
Arguably the happiest of the podium finishers was the Alpine of Fernando Alonso, who finished P3. It was Alonso’s first podium finish since the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix, a well-deserved one at that with Sergio Perez charging behind in P4.
Best of the Rest
Despite missing out on the podium, Sergio Perez recovered to P4 from P11 on Sunday to score much needed points for the constructors championship.
It was a dream day for Alpine as Alonso’s teammate, Esteban Ocon, finished P5 under the checkered flag.
Canadian driver Lance Stroll crossed his Aston Martin in P6, ahead of the Ferrari duo of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in P7 and P8.
Thanks to a late pit stop, the McLaren of Lando Norris managed P9 as the second Aston Martin of Sebastian Vettel rounded out the points for the day in P10.
What Happened to Alpha Tauri
With the constructors battle tight with Alpine, Alpha Tauri had a day to forget at the inaugural Qatar Grand Prix. Pierre Gasly dropped from P2 to P11 after failing to make a double pit stop stick at the Losail Circuit. As a result, Alpine moved ahead of Alpha Tauri to snag fifth in the standings.
Looking Ahead
The grid continues in the Middle East as we move on to Jeddah. With only two races to go, Hamilton and Verstappen are neck and neck with sights on the title in what has proven to be a championship to remember.
