HIGHLIGHTS: Catch up on Qatar GP Qualifying as Piastri seizes pole position from Norris and Verstappen

In what could be an important moment for the championship, Oscar Piastri snatched pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix from Lando Norris, with fellow title contender Max Verstappen settling for third place.

A tense ending to Qualifying saw Norris abort his final attempt, allowing Piastri to charge to the top spot with a rapid time of 1m 19.387s, just over a tenth clear of his team mate. With Verstappen just behind, Norris’ challenge of winning the race to secure the Drivers’ Championship has been made that little bit harder.

Outside of the top three, the Mercedes pair of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli took P4 and P5 respectively, beating two impressive laps from Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz.

The Spaniard was involved in one of two unusual incidents that happened in quick succession during Q3 – Charles Leclerc suffered a massive spin, and Sainz was sent onto the track with a sticker on his right-rear tyre, which fell off onto the circuit. The session was temporarily halted to recover the debris, giving the drivers a brief pause before their final laps.

Leclerc’s spin was just one part of a frustrating Qualifying for Ferrari as Lewis Hamilton was once again knocked out in P18, the same position he claimed in Friday’s Sprint Qualifying.

To watch the best bits from Qualifying in Qatar, click go on the video player above.