Formula 1 with Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz live

He Qatar Grand Prixpenultimate round of the World Championship on the Losail International Circuit, welcomes this weekend the brand new quadruple champion, the Dutch Max Verstappen who will take the title in the fierce battle between Ferrari and McLaren for the Constructors’ title, with everything very close and to be decided. He will start to settle into the F1 Qatar rankings for the sprint race.

“Mad Max” was crowned Formula 1 world champion last week for the fourth time in a row after finishing fifth in a Las Vegas Grand Prix dominated by Mercedes and in which the Dutchman found his colder side so as not to enter into sterile battles that would give wings to a Lando Norris who needed a miracle that did not happen.

NOW, Verstappenalready title winner in 2021, 2022 and 2023, goes to Qatar without pressure and with the satisfaction of having won his most difficult title, without a dominant car and with more problems than usual. With everything at stake in the Pilots, all that remains is to define which is the best team of the year, even if Red Bull This already seems somewhat out of the woods, especially without the expected performance from the Mexican. Sergio Perez –He has not been on the podium since April in China.

And the burning battle for Constructors’ World Cup they feature it McLarenleader with 608 points, ahead of Ferrari (584), which is struggling to end a 16-year drought – it last did so in 2008. Even though they cut back in Las Vegas and came in at 24, the Qatari course seems favorable due to its rapid turns for the “papaya”, which must regain the superiority of two months ago.

In addition, Losail hosts the final weekend with a sprint format with the most points at stake, which could be decisive for the team title, while Norris, now relieved of the pressure, looks to say goodbye to the World Championship with two prestigious victories. In Ferrariwho must leave behind the quarrels between his drivers in Las Vegas, do not expect great results, even if the Monegasque Charles Leclercthird (319), wants to push for second place.

The Spanish Carlos Sainz (Ferrari), third in Las Vegas, arrives at a circuit where he is not particularly good, without having finished last year, in a race that was hell for the grid due to excessive heat, a problem which we did not expect in this edition -around 24º all weekend-. In 2023, Verstappen dominated the weekend with victory and pole, and in his first edition in 2021 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) created a surprise.

The Asturian, double world champion in 2005 and 2006, took third place on the podium with Alpine for the first time in seven years, since the last time was in April 2014, when he was also third with Ferrari. But the situation is very different and in Aston Martin They are already looking forward to a much more optimistic future. In Las Vegas, Alonso achieved a good eleventh place, so in Losail he is looking to get into the points for the first time since Singapore in September.