Lewis Hamilton bagged the first place in the Qatar GP yesterday, with Max Verstappen finishing second. Alpine’s Fernando Alonso completed the podium by finishing third ahead of Sergio Perez, Esteban Oncon and Lance Stroll. Alonso achieved his first podium finish since the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix at the Losail Circuit.
Verstappen had to start the race in seventh, after violating a yellow flag in qualification got him hit with a five-place penalty. He could only finish as high as second, with Hamilton closing the gap on him.
Here is what the veteran Mercedes star had to say about his win in the Middle East:
“Our starting position was a bit compromised but luckily we had a really good start. I got quite quickly back to second and to get the fast lap was very nice. It’s going to be difficult to the end but that’s nice, it keeps things exciting. This track is a lot of fun to drive. It’s really quick. I feel good, it’s going to be a tight battle until the end.”
Hamilton’s win sees him stay in second place behind Verstappen in the Championship standings. The British driver currently has 343.5 points, while Verstappen leads the board with 351.5 points to his name.
Fernando Alonso was named the Driver of the Day, but Sergio Perez also had a decent claim to the award. The Red Bull driver finished fourth after starting in 11th place.
Verstappen will have to perform in two more races to seal the Championship victory at the end of the season. The next race is at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and the season ends at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.
