F1 Qatar Grand Prix: Start time, how to watch, & more
Lewis Hamilton will start from pole position for the Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix at the Losail International Circuit. Here's how and when you can watch the race.
The F1 drama continues to crank up as the season approaches its conclusion, with Hamilton taking his 102nd career F1 pole position in a dominant display in qualifying.
Title rival Max Verstappen secured second place in his Red Bull, but he has been summoned to an FIA stewards hearing for allegedly ignoring double waved yellow flags during his final Q3 lap. The incident occurred when Pierre Gasly’s front wing was damaged by the kerbs and caused his front-right tyre to puncture.
If Verstappen is judged to be at fault he could face a five-place grid drop for the Qatar GP, going on previous penalties for similar offences, but provisionally remains set to start the race from the front row.
The FIA also introduced new rear wing technical checks after qualifying in Qatar amid growing tensions between Red Bull and Mercedes about legality suspicions over rear wings.
Despite topping FP2 and FP3, Valtteri Bottas had to settle for third place in qualifying for Mercedes and has also been summoned to see the stewards over the yellow flag incident, with Gasly taking fourth place after his late puncture.
Fernando Alonso impressed in Q3 to take fifth place for Alpine ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr, who will see the stewards Sunday morning over the Gasly yellow flag incident. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri), Esteban Ocon (Alpine) and Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) completed the top 10 as Red Bull’s Sergio Perez missed out in 11th place in Q2.
Charles Leclerc suffered a cracked chassis which was diagnosed as the cause for his drop in pace for Ferrari in qualifying, leaving him down in 13th place behind Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, pole man Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, and Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, in the post Qualifying Press Conference
Photo by: FIA Pool
When is the F1 Qatar Grand Prix?
Date: Sunday 21st November 2021
Start time: 2:00pm GMT, 5:00pm local time
The 20th round of the 2021 F1 season, the Qatar GP at the Losail International Circuit, gets underway at 5pm local time (2pm GMT) on Sunday 21st November.
How can I watch the Qatar GP?
In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports will be live broadcasting the Qatar GP, with the race shown live on Sky Sports F1. Pre-race coverage will be starting on Sky Sports F1 at 12:30pm GMT ahead of the race start at 2:00pm GMT.
Channel: Sky Sports F1
Start time: 12:30pm GMT, Sunday 21st November
Autosport will be running a live text coverage of the Qatar GP here.
When can I watch the Qatar GP highlights?
In the United Kingdom Channel 4 is also broadcasting highlights of the Qatar GP at 6:30pm GMT on Sunday.
The full programme will run for two hours and 30 minutes, covering the pre-race, the race highlights and the initial post-race reaction to wrap up the major talking points of the race weekend.
For the entire 2021 F1 season, Channel 4 will broadcast highlights of every qualifying and race of each event. The highlights will also be available on Channel 4’s on demand catch up services.
Channel: Channel 4
Start time: 6:30pm GMT, Sunday 21st November
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR21, Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin AMR21, and Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF21
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Will the Qatar GP be on the radio?
Live radio coverage of every practice, qualifying and race for the 2021 F1 season will be available on the BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 Live Sports Extra stations and the via the BBC Sport website.
Live coverage of the Qatar GP will start at 1:45pm GMT on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra and on the BBC Sounds app.
Weather forecast for the Qatar GP?
Current weather forecasts predict hot and dry conditions at the Losail International Circuit, with a very low chance of rain during the race. The temperature is expected to be 27 degrees Celsius for the start of the race – four degrees warmer than the Brazilian GP.
How many laps is the Qatar GP?
The race is scheduled to complete 57 laps of the Losail International Circuit, covering a total race distance of 306.660km.
F1 Qatar GP starting grid
| Cla | Driver | Chassis | Time | Gap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lewis Hamilton |
 |
Mercedes | 1'20.827 | |
| 2 |  Max Verstappen |
 |
Red Bull | 1'21.282 | 0.455 |
| 3 |  Valtteri Bottas |
 |
Mercedes | 1'21.478 | 0.651 |
| 4 |  Pierre Gasly |
 |
AlphaTauri | 1'21.640 | 0.813 |
| 5 |  Fernando Alonso |
 |
Alpine | 1'21.670 | 0.843 |
| 6 | Lando Norris |
 |
McLaren | 1'21.731 | 0.904 |
| 7 | Carlos Sainz Jr |
 |
Ferrari | 1'21.840 | 1.013 |
| 8 |  Yuki Tsunoda |
 |
AlphaTauri | 1'21.881 | 1.054 |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon |
 |
Alpine | 1'22.028 | 1.201 |
| 10 |  Sebastian Vettel |
 |
Aston Martin | 1'22.785 | 1.958 |
| 11 |  Sergio Perez |
 |
Red Bull | 1'22.346 | 1.519 |
| 12 |  Lance Stroll |
 |
Aston Martin | 1'22.460 | 1.633 |
| 13 |  Charles Leclerc |
 |
Ferrari | 1'22.463 | 1.636 |
| 14 |  Daniel Ricciardo |
 |
McLaren | 1'22.597 | 1.770 |
| 15 | George Russell |
 |
Williams | 1'22.756 | 1.929 |
| 16 | Kimi Raikkonen |
 |
Alfa Romeo | 1'23.156 | 2.329 |
| 17 | Nicholas Latifi |
 |
Williams | 1'23.213 | 2.386 |
| 18 |  Antonio Giovinazzi |
 |
Alfa Romeo | 1'23.262 | 2.435 |
| 19 | Mick Schumacher |
 |
Haas | 1'23.407 | 2.580 |
| 20 |  Nikita Mazepin |
 |
Haas | 1'25.859 | 5.032 |
| View full results | |||||
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