Max Verstappen has won all but one of the sprint races so far this year, but could still find things a challenge in Qatar. Without a win in eight grands prix, Red Bull had slumped from its winning form at the start of the year. The team looks to have turned a corner — Verstappen won the US sprint and finished third in the GP before then claiming a brilliant win from 17th on the grid in Sao Paulo — but its rivals have continued to bring upgrades, Ferrari in particular making a statement with its Austin 1-2 and Carlos Sainz’s Mexico GP victory.
Verstappen only started fourth for the first sprint race of 2024 at the Chinese Grand Prix but was soon back in his familiar place at the head of the race, eventually winning by 13 seconds. He also won the second sprint race in Miami, leading every lap, but only crossing the line 3.4sec ahead of Charles Leclerc. Red Bull’s dominance was over by the time of the Austrian Grand Prix, but sprint race polesitter Verstappen still managed to cling on to the lead in the Saturday race, despite coming under attack from both pacy McLarens.
The Dutchman took the sprint pole in Austin too, and managed to hold off Lando Norris, who looked faster for a large duration of the contest. The Briton finally managed to end Verstappen’s reign of sprint race dominant in Sao Paulo, as he claimed victory in the sprint just ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri.
Last year, Verstappen won sprint events in Austria, Belgium, the US and Brazil. Team-mate Sergio Perez picked up a win in Azerbaijan and McLaren‘s Oscar Piastri scored a career-first victory in Qatar.
For more details on how sprint races work, the point system and the current standings, click here for our full 2024 F1 sprint race guide.
Next F1 sprint race of 2024: Qatar Grand Prix
🇶🇦 Losail
| Date — 29 Nov – 01 December 2024 Sprint race laps — 19 Lap record — Max Verstappen, 1min 24.319sec (2023) |
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Qatar GP sprint race session times
Session |
Date |
Time (BST) |
| FP1 | Friday 29 November | 1.30pm |
| Sprint qualifying | Friday 29 November | 5.30pm |
| Sprint race | Saturday 30 November | 2pm |
| Grand Prix qualifying | Saturday 30 November | 6pm |
| Austrian Grand Prix | Sunday 1 December | 4pm |
2024 F1 sprint race calendar – snapshot
| Date | Race | Circuit | 2024 Winner |
| 20 April | Chinese Grand Prix | Shanghai | Max Verstappen |
| 4 May | Miami Grand Prix | Miami International Autodrome | Max Verstappen |
| 29 June | Austrian Grand Prix | Red Bull Ring | Max Verstappen |
| 19 October | United States Grand Prix | COTA | Max Verstappen |
| 2 November | Sao Paulo Grand Prix | Interlagos | Lando Norris |
| 30 November | Qatar Grand Prix | Losail | TBC |
Full 2024 F1 sprint race results and schedule
1. Chinese Grand Prix
🇨🇳 Shanghai International Circuit
| Date | April 20, 2024 |
| Sprint qualifying result | 1 Norris, 2 Hamilton, 3 Alonso |
| Sprint race result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Hamilton, 3 Perez |
Full sprint results 2024 GP analysis
2. Miami Grand Prix
🇺🇸 Miami International Autodrome
| Date | May 4, 2024 |
| Sprint qualifying result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Leclerc, 3 Perez |
| Sprint race result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Leclerc, 3 Perez |
Full sprint results 2024 GP analysis
3. Austrian Grand Prix
🇦🇹 Red Bull Ring
| Date | June 29, 2024 |
| Sprint qualifying result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Norris, 3 Piastri |
| 2024 sprint result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Piastri, 3 Norris |
Full sprint results 2024 GP analysis
4. United States Grand Prix
🇺🇸 Circuit of the Americas (COTA)
| Date | October 19, 2024 |
| Sprint qualifying result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Russell, 3 Leclerc |
| 2024 sprint result | 1 Verstappen, 2 Sainz, 3 Norris |
Full sprint results 2024 GP analysis
5. Sao Paulo Grand Prix
🇧🇷 Autódromo José Carlos Pace
| Date | November 2, 2024 |
| Sprint qualifying result | 1 Piastri, 2 Norris, 3 Leclerc |
| 2024 sprint result | 1 Norris, 2 Piastri, 3 Leclerc |
6. Qatar Grand Prix
🇶🇦 Losail
| Date | November 30, 2024 |
| Laps | TBC |
| 2023 sprint result | 1 Piastri, 2 Verstappen, 3 Norris |