HIGHLIGHTS: Catch the action from an absorbing Qatar Sprint as Verstappen seals the title while Piastri takes the victory

Oscar Piastri claimed his first win in Formula 1 after the McLaren rookie took the chequered flag in first place at the Qatar Sprint, ahead of Max Verstappen – whose second-place finish helped confirm his third drivers’ title.

Starting on pole, the medium-shod Piastri made a strong getaway at the start but later lost out to the Mercedes of George Russell on the softs. However, he was able to retake the lead before crossing the line in P1.

READ MORE: Verstappen secures third F1 world title as Piastri takes Sprint victory in Qatar

Verstappen lost out at the start and dropped from third to fifth but made it back up the order to take second place, ahead of Lando Norris – who also recovered to finish in the top three after a poor start saw him go from second to sixth.

George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were fourth and fifth for Mercedes, followed by Carlos Sainz, with Alex Albon recovering from 17th on the grid to take eighth for the final point in the Sprint. However, this was later elevated to seventh after Charles Leclerc's five-second penalty for track limits was implemented, dropping the Ferrari man down to 13th.

It was an action-packed Sprint that saw the Safety Car out on track multiple times. A few drivers' evenings ended in the gravel, including Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez, who were involved in a collision with Nico Hulkenberg that ultimately handed the title to Verstappen – Perez having been the only driver mathematically able to prevent Verstappen being crowned heading into the Sprint.

Click on the video player above to relive the action from an entertaining Sprint in Qatar as we ready ourselves for more action in Sunday’s race.