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  Qatar GP: Saturday Results Doha, Qatar (October 7, 2023) 
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen was crowned 2023 Formula One Champion Saturday night at the Lusail International Circuit outside of Doha, Qatar. The championship was the Dutch drivers third consecutive championship win. Verstappen has 48 career wins and 14 wins this season. The three time World Champion set the record for consecutive wins in a season, 10, this year. "Luckily, I got to FaceTime my mum after the race, she was already on the champagne! It's beautiful because my mum understands, she is a racer too. My dad and was here at the track also so it's nice to have them close," said Verstappen. "We talk about performance of the car but I think that the most important thing is the atmosphere and the people working in the Team. We've had a lot of great results in tough conditions, but we did an incredible job." Verstappen sealed the 2023 Championship when his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, second in points, who needed a top 3 finish to keep his title race alive, went off the track on Lap 11 after tangling with the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg. "[Max] now joins some of the great names - Brabham, Piquet, Lauda, Senna and Sir Jackie Stewart," said Red Bull Team Principal, Christian Horner. "It is fitting company and very well deserved. Max is the most competitive driver that I have ever met. The passion, the heart and the abundance of skill puts him up there with the very best." This weekend F1 is using the Sprint format for the fourth time this season. Saturday's format included qualifying for a Saturday night Sprint race (the Shootout) and then the Sprint race itself in which teams can gain points. There are two more sprint events to come before the end of the season: the United States Grand Prix in Austin and the São Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos. With McLaren rookie sensation Oscar Piastri starting Saturday night's Sprint race on the pole and his teammate Lando Norris to his left (P2), the 19 lap Sprint race was eventually won by the Australian native Piastri with Verstappen (P2) and Norris (P3) sharing the podium with red hot rookie. After giving up the lead to Mercedes driver, George Russell, on Lap 3, Piastri re-took the first position, with help from DRS, on Lap 11. "An excellent Saturday for the entire team, with Oscar landing his first Sprint win, and a third place finish for Lando. We were strong and had good outright pace, so it's a well-deserved result," said Andrea Stella, McLaren Team Principal. "For Oscar, this is a historical moment in his career, as was his first podium in Suzuka in a Grand Prix." Russell and Mercedes teammate, Lewis Hamilton, rounded out the Top 5. Sprint Results Pos Driver Team Laps Gap 1 Piastri McLaren 19 35:01.297 2 Verstappen Red Bull 19 + 0:01.871 3 Norris McLaren 19 + 0:08.497 4 Russell Mercedes 19 + 0:11.036 5 Hamilton Mercedes 19 + 0:17.314 6 Sainz Ferrari 19 + 0:18.806 7 Albon Williams 19 + 0:19.864 8 Alonso Aston Martin 19 + 0:21.180 9 Gasly Alpine 19 + 0:21.742 10 Bottas Alfa Romeo 19 + 0:22.208 11 Tsunoda AlphaTauri 19 + 0:22.863 12 Leclerc Ferrari 19 + 0:24.860 13 Magnussen Haas 19 + 0:24.970 14 Zhou Alfa Romeo 19 + 0:26.868 15 Stroll Aston Martin 19 + 0:29.523 Hulkenberg Haas 11 Accident Damage Ocon Alpine 10 Accident Damage Perez Red Bull 10 Accident Damage Sargeant Williams 2 Spun Off Lawson AlphaTauri 0 Spun Off Shootout Results Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1 Piastri McLaren 1:24.454 143.537 mph 2 Norris McLaren 1:24.536 0.082 3 Verstappen Red Bull 1:24.646 0.192 4 Russell Mercedes 1:24.841 0.387 5 Sainz Ferrari 1:25.155 0.701 6 Leclerc Ferrari 1:25.247 0.793 7 Hulkenberg Haas 1:25.200 0.746 8 Perez Red Bull 1:25.382 0.928 9 Alonso Aston Martin No Time 10 Ocon Alpine No Time 11 Gasly Alpine 1:25.686 12 Hamilton Mercedes 1:25.962 13 Bottas Alfa Romeo 1:26.236 14 Lawson AlphaTauri 1:26.584 15 Zhou Alfa Romeo 1:54.546 16 Stroll Aston Martin 1:26.849 17 Albon Williams 1:26.862 18 Tsunoda AlphaTauri 1:26.926 19 Magnussen Haas 1:27.438 20 Sargeant Williams 2:05.741 (image provided by Alpine F1 Media) |