Formula 1 Ooredoo Qatar Grand Prix 2021 Preview

Here we take a look at the last of F1’s triple-header, as the sport travels to Qatar for round 20 of the calendar, with Max Verstappen’s lead in the World Driver’s Championship currently standing at 14 points having finished second in the Sprint Qualifying at the Brazilian GP and in the race itself, following Lewis Hamilton’s incredible victory at Interlagos.

The victory for Hamilton was vital, as it effectively kept his title chances alive and kicking with everything to play for. The Brit knows that if he wins the final three races of the season in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi that he will be the first-ever eight-time world champion regardless of what Verstappen does, whilst the Dutch driver also knows that outsourcing Hamilton in his next two races alone could clinch his first World Driver’s Championship.

This title battle has been one for the ages and will go down long in the memory of fans of the sport. The way this season has gone, there will likely be more twists and turns, especially with the sport travelling to two brand new circuits in two of the final three races.

The Qatar GP track layout has a very similar feel to that of Bahrain in certain areas of the circuit, as it has a long fast straight for the start/finish line, as well as a kinked right and left-hander for turns one, two and three before entering a unique windy track up until turn 10. This could be very similar to Brazil, where the Mercedes will have a power advantage down the straights, but, Red Bull will likely profit from being better through the corners, with the track perhaps slightly leaning towards that of Mercedes.

This looks like a track that will be very difficult to overtake on due to how weavy it is apart from on the straights, meaning that overtakes will likely be saved until the straights, signifying that there will be a heavy emphasis on qualifying.

Prediction: Pole Position: Hamilton. 2nd. Verstappen. 3rd. Bottas

Verstappen will know that a victory here could be crucial, but, at Brazil, Hamilton had a 15.2 KMH speed advantage at the end of the home straight, that sort of pace will be crucial in Qatar, as it will likely make up for any advantages that the Red Bull’s have in sector two, however, it is well known that Red Bull do perform better in the heat, having done so in Austria, the Netherlands and more.

As stated above, this circuit looks like it is a power-based track which on paper should favour the Mercedes and that is why we expect Hamilton to dominate this weekend’s GP bar some sensational interventions from Verstappen. What will be crucial is if Bottas could also manage to get ahead of the Dutchman, as it would put a serious dent into his points advantage over the Brit.

Race Prediction: 1st. Hamilton. 2nd. Verstappen. 3rd. Bottas

Throughout the Brazilian GP there was a multitude of impressive performers, especially the two Ferrari drivers in Charles LeClerc and Carlos Sainz, whose fifth and sixth place finishes saw the Tifosi move 31.5 points ahead in the constructors, meaning that both of the McLaren drivers will need to fight back in Qatar, as Lando Norris earned a single point having had his race compromised by a first-lap collision with Sainz, whilst Daniel Ricciardo retired due to reliability issues.

Meanwhile, there is a close battle ongoing between Alpine and Alphatauri for fifth in the Constructor’s Championship, as each team has 112 points following Pierre Gasly’s seventh-place finish in Brazil that earned him six points, matching the tallies of Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso who finished eighth and ninth in Interlagos.

Two driver’s that will be hoping to do well in their last three races in the sport for the foreseeable future are Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi, as the 2007 World Champion is retiring at the end of the season and finished 12th in Brazil, whilst the latter who is the only Italian driver on the grid has been not been given a new deal for next season, seeing Chinese driver Guanyu Zhou become his countries first driver in the sport having been announced as Alfa Romeo’s second driver alongside Bottas.