| SESSIONS | DATE | TIME | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Practice 1 | LEC | 1:21.953 | |
| Sprint Shootout | NOR | 1:21.012 | |
| Sprint Race | PIA | 27:03.010 | |
| Qualifying | RUS | 1:20.575 | |
| Race | Sun Dec 1st | 04:00 PM | |
Qatar GP: George Russell on pole as Max Verstappen demoted to second
Max Verstappen takes pole position during qualifying at the Qatar GP
Max Verstappen was eventually stripped of his pole position at the Qatar Grand Prix after he was penalised one place on the grid for an incident in the final part of Saturday's qualifying session.
George Russell will start Sunday's Qatar Grand Prix from pole position as Max Verstappen, who was quickest in the session, was demoted by stewards hours after qualifying.
Newly crowned four-time world champion Verstappen was fastest in a closely fought qualifying session, but the Dutchman was penalised by stewards for "driving unnecessarily slowly," as he prepared for his pole position lap, a breach of Article 33.4 of the sporting regulations.
Verstappen was given a one-place drop, meaning he and Russell trade starting positions on the front row for Sunday's grand prix.
The Red Bull driver, who has not been on pole position for a grand prix since Austria in June, was quicker than Russell by 0.055 seconds following a remarkable turnaround from Saturday's sprint race in which he finished eighth.
Verstappen clinched this year's drivers' championship with a fifth place finish at last weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, but has only won one race in the last 12, when he secured a crucial victory at a wet Brazilian Grand Prix earlier in November.
After the session Verstappen said his car "felt a bit more connected" after making setup changes following the sprint race, but admitted he "never thought it would make such a swing in performance."
The McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who finished second and first in Saturday's sprint race, will start third and fourth.
Crucially for McLaren's constructors' championship hopes, they will start ahead of the two Ferraris, with Charles Leclerc taking fifth on the grid and Carlos Sainz starting seventh. Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton split the Ferraris in sixth.
After its one-two victory in Saturday's sprint race, McLaren leads Ferrari by 30 points in the constructors' championship and needs to outscore the Italian team by 15 points or more to secure the title in Sunday's grand prix.
If not, the championship will go down to the final round in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
Fernando Alonso secured eighth on the grid for Aston Martin ahead of the Red Bull of Sergio Perez and Haas driver Kevin Magnussen in tenth.
Alpine's Pierre Gasly missed out on a place in the top ten by 0.012 seconds and will start the race 11th ahead of the Saubers of Zhou Guanyu in 12th and Valtteri Bottas in 13th.
RB's Yuki Tsunoda took 14th on the grid ahead of the second Aston Martin of Lance Stroll in 15th.
Williams' Alex Albon will start the race from 16th after missing out on a place in Q2 by 0.026 seconds.
RB's Liam Lawson took 17th place ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in 18th, who struggled despite finishing seventh in the sprint race.
Williams driver Franco Colapinto and Alpine's Esteban Ocon will make up the final row of the grid in 19th and 20th.
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