Now three-time Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen reigned supreme at a hot and humid Qatar Grand Prix to notch victory No. 14 of the season as several drivers suffered in the extreme conditions.
Autoweek rounds up the main talking points from Lusail.
Extreme Heat Knocks out Logan Sargeant
Logan Sargeant valiantly tried to complete Sunday’s race but retired after 40 of the 57 laps due to ill health. Sargeant suffered flu-like symptoms earlier in the week and encountered extreme dehydration through the race.
“The last thing I wanted to do was retire the car, but I had to put my health first,” said Sargeant. “Sorry to the team for not being able to reach the finish line.”
But the American was not an outlier as most of the drivers struggled in conditions.
Qatar’s event being held in early October – compared to late November of 2021 and next year’s scheduled December event – contributed to daytime temperatures of 107F. The evening temperatures were slightly lower but the humidity surged to 80 per cent, creating stifling conditions for drivers, accentuated by drivers pushing more in the race because of the mandatory shorter stint at a track that is very high speed. It meant most of the race was qualifying lap after qualifying lap.
“This is the toughest race I think for every driver in Formula 1 of our careers, I don’t believe the one that says it’s not,” said Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. “It’s not even a physical preparation, it’s just dehydration, it’s such a level that your vision is so much worse, your heart rate is going to the stars and it’s very difficult to control all of this.”
Winner Verstappen – who, along with Oscar Piastri, slouched on the floor in the cooldown room – compared Lusail to a sauna, Lando Norris said it was “on the limit” while George Russell said he “felt close to fainting” and “felt ill during the race and had to ask my engineer to give me encouragement to try to take my mind away from it.”
Several drivers were seen struggling to get out of their cars post-race. Lance Stroll and Sargeant’s Williams teammate Alex Albon in particular required assistance, the former falling in the TV pen having said “the last 25-30 laps were blurry in high-speed corners,” while the latter was cleared and checked by medics for acute heat exposure. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon threw up for two laps during the opening third of the race and still went on to score points.
“I think it’s getting to the limit and someone is going to have a heat stroke,” said veteran Valtteri Bottas. “Obviously the feeling is like torture. Any hotter than this would be, I would say, not safe.”
Yuki Tsunoda labelled the heat “insane” while several drivers tried to open visors for stints – which is difficult due to the sand and dust blowing about – or rest hands on the wheel along the sole straight.
Normal strategy went out the window after Pirelli put lap limits on its tires for Qatar.
Pirelli Puts Unusual Limit on Tires
It is not often that everyone goes into a race effectively knowing the usually super-secretive strategies.
A pre-race directive from tire supplier Pirelli meant drivers were not permitted to exceed 18 laps on a single set of tires, effectively turning the 57-lap encounter into a mandatory three-stop race.
The reason was that after Friday’s running Pirelli discovered micro tears in the sidewall, between the topping compound and the carcass cords, on several sets of tires across various cars. These were attributed to the aggressive Turn 12-13 curbs, which the drivers took at high speed and spent a prolonged period of time running across.
A remedy was implemented for Saturday’s running, moving the track limits inwards by 80 centimeters, meaning drivers were not using the curbs so much. However, the interruptions to a messy Sprint Race meant Pirelli was unable to gather meaningful data and consequently erred on the side of caution, with the FIA imposing a stint limit on all compounds.
“The committed and transparent collaboration between all of Formula 1’s stakeholders—the FIA, Formula 1, the teams and drivers—meant that there was a rapid and efficient reaction to solving a safety issue that involved us at first hand,” said Pirelli boss Mario Isola. “Today, the sport was able to put on an interesting show for the spectators with a lot of overtaking and duels, despite the limitations imposed by the FIA. In the coming weeks, we will continue to analyze the tires used this weekend to acquire as much information as possible and share that with the FIA.”
Lusail is on the calendar through at least 2032 so a long-term solution is required for all parties.
Verstappen’s Icing on the Cake
Max Verstappen capped a championship weekend with Formula 1 career win No. 49.
Verstappen clinched his third world title in Saturday’s Sprint Race and Sunday was merely the icing on the cake as he dominated proceedings from pole position.
Verstappen ran a relatively cautious three-stop strategy—with little need to take risks—to make it 14 for the year, from 17 starts, and 49 for his career.
“I think what made the race was my first stint,” said Verstappen. “After that I could just manage my pace, making sure that my tires were always in a good window. But the McLarens were quick again today, I had to push for it, so it was definitely a tough race out there.”
Verstappen now has more points than the totals of second and third in the championship combined, after Sergio Perez had a lackluster race, and Lewis Hamilton retired.
Behind Verstappen it was McLaren which excelled once again.
The squad is now within touching distance of Aston Martin’s fourth in the championship. The team is now just 11 points behind after a second successive double podium, this time with Oscar Piastri in front of Lando Norris, following on from Piastri’s triumph in Saturday’s Sprint Race. Piastri rose from sixth to second early on, aided by picking his way through the messy first corner, while Lando Norris charged from tenth on the grid to join his team-mate on the podium. Norris reeled in Piastri through the course of the race before McLaren understandably imposed team orders during the final stint. #
“Very very happy, obviously – Turn 1 was nice, that was definitely in the game plan before the race,” quipped Piastri joked.
Lewis Hamilton had a short day at the office after an incident in Turn 1.
Lost Opportunity for Hamilton, Mercedes
Mercedes displayed encouraging pace during qualifying on Friday to leave George Russell second and Lewis Hamilton third on the grid. From those positions the Silver Arrows were primed for a double podium finish—and perhaps even a rare shot at runaway champion Verstappen—given they had two cars to use against the lone up front Red Bull.
But any hopes were dashed into Turn 1 when a fast-starting Hamilton – on soft tires to the mediums of Russell—left his teammate no room when he swept in from the outside line. The two W14s came together, pitching Hamilton into retirement, and leaving Russell needing repairs. They both vented on the radio in the aftermath but Hamilton quickly held up his hands after watching the replay.
“It was obviously frustrating because I felt this tap from the rear end,” said Hamilton. “But I don’t think George had anywhere to go. I think it was just an unfortunate scenario, I’m happy to take responsibility as that’s my role.”
Hamilton went to Russell post-race, and embraced his team-mate, as he apologised for the incident.
Russell was left towards the rear of the pack, and still had to make three pit stops after his initial pit stop for repairs, but recovered well to score fourth place.
“The incident at Turn 1 was absolutely not intentional from either myself or Lewis,” said Russell. “Visibility is so difficult in these cars and especially when you’re racing. There are big blind spots and we both have so much respect for one another. We will make sure we come out of this stronger.”
Results
F1 Qatar Grand Prix
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 57 laps
- Oscar Piastri, McLaren, +5.833 seconds
- Lando Norris, McLaren, +5.969
- George Russell, Mercedes, +34.119
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, +38.976
- Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin, +49.032
- Esteban Ocon, Alpine, +1:02.390
- Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo, +1:06.563
- Zhou Guanyu, Alfa Romeo, +1:16.127
- Sergio Perez, Red Bull, +1:20.181
- Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, +1:21.652
- Pierre Gasly, Alpine, +1:22.300
- Alexander Albon, Williams, +1:31.014
- Kevin Magnussen, Haas, +1 lap
- Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, +1 lap
- Nico Hulkenberg, Haas, +1 lap
- Liam Lawson, AlphaTauri, +1 lap
- Logan Sargeant, Williams, +16 laps
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, +57 laps
- Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, DNS
Updated Drivers’ Standings
- Max Verstappen 433
- Sergio Perez 224
- Lewis Hamilton 194
- Fernando Alonso 183
- Carlos Sainz 153
- Charles Leclerc 145
- Lando Norris 136
- George Russell 132
- Oscar Piastri 83
- Lance Stroll 47
- Pierre Gasly 46
- Esteban Ocon 44
- Alexander Albon 23
- Valtteri Bottas 10
- Nico Hulkenberg 9
- Zhou Guanyu 6
- Yuki Tsunoda 3
- Kevin Magnussen 3
- Liam Lawson 2
- Logan Sargeant 0
- Nyck de Vries 0
- Daniel Ricciardo 0
Updated Constructors’ Standings
- Red Bull 657
- Mercedes 326
- Ferrari 298
- Aston Martin 230
- McLaren 219
- Alpine 90
- Williams 23
- Alfa Romeo 16
- Haas 12
- AlphaTauri 5
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