Norris could win the title for the first time in the race that he becomes the most-experienced McLaren driver and Verstappen could equal Senna on the list of most races led from start to end. Here are the milestones and records which could be broken at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix!
THE 2025 QATAR GRAND PRIX MILESTONES
The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix will be the 1,148th World Championship event in Formula 1 history.
This will be the fourth time that Formula 1 has raced in Qatar. After its debut in 2021, Lusail Circuit returned to host its second F1 race in 2023. This race is part of a ten-year deal Formula 1 has signed with Qatar.
The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix will be the first-ever F1 race to take place on November 30.
This weekend, Lando Norris will overtake David Coulthard as the driver who has made the most starts with McLaren in Formula 1. Coulthard made 150 starts with the team during his career, while this will be Norris’ 151st start with the team.
The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix will be Max Verstappen’s 232nd consecutive start, having started every race since his debut at the 2015 Australian Grand Prix. It will see him equal Daniel Ricciardo for second on the list of most consecutive starts in Formula 1 history.
This weekend will mark Lewis Hamilton’s 250th start in car number 44. He is the first driver to have made as many as 250 starts in a single car number.
Lap 29 of the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix will be the 200th Grand Prix racing lap at Lusail Circuit in the track’s history on the F1 calendar.
The 2025 Qatar Grand Prix will host the sixth Sprint weekend of the 2025 F1 season. This will be the 24th Sprint event in total. It will be the third time that Lusail Circuit has hosted the Sprint format, having hosted a Sprint event in each of the last two seasons.
NORRIS’ FIRST CHANCE AT THE CHAMPIONSHIP
For the first time in his career, Lando Norris heads to the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix with a chance of becoming World Champion. If he does so, he will become the 35th different driver to have won the title.
A title win for Norris would make him the first new World Champion since Max Verstappen took the title for the first time at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Norris can become the 11th different British driver to win the title, extending Britain’s record as the nation with the most different title-winning drivers. He will be the first new driver to join that list since Jenson Button in 2009.
Norris would become the second driver to win the title in Qatar. Max Verstappen is the only other driver to have done so, having won the title as a result of the Sprint at the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix weekend. Lusail Circuit would become the 13th circuit to have hosted multiple title-deciders.
At 26 years and 17 days old, Norris would become the seventh-youngest driver to have won the World Championship. He will be nine days older than Max Verstappen when he won the title at the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.
Norris would become only the fourth driver – after Nigel Mansell, Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg – to have started as many as 150 Grands Prix before taking victory for the first time.
Norris would be the fifth driver to win his first title in his seventh season in Formula 1. Mike Hawthorn, Jochen Rindt, Kimi Raikkonen and Max Verstappen are the other drivers who did so.
THE FORMULA 1 RECORDS WHICH COULD BE BROKEN
Lewis Hamilton led every lap of the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix, while Max Verstappen led every lap of both the 2023 and 2024 Qatar Grands Prix. Should a single driver lead every lap of the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, it would be only the second time that the first four World Championship Grands Prix at a circuit have been led from start to end by a single driver. Zandvoort is the only other track at which this has happened, with a single driver having led every lap of the 1952, 1953, 1955 and 1958 Dutch Grands Prix.
A pole position for Max Verstappen would see the Netherlands equal Italy for sixth place on the list of most poles for a nation in Formula 1.
If McLaren lock out the front row for the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, this will be the team’s 70th front row lock-out. They will become the second constructor to reach the milestone, after Mercedes who did so at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix.
If Oscar Piastri wins the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, he will join a list of nine other drivers – including his team-mate – who’ve won as many as ten Grands Prix without ever winning the title.
A pole position at any Grand Prix in 2025 for Kimi Antonelli, Ollie Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto or Isack Hadjar would make them the youngest Grand Prix polesitter in F1 history.
Max Verstappen holds the record for wins from the most different grid positions in Formula 1. He’ll become the first driver to win from 11 different grid slots this weekend should he win from 5th, 8th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 18th, 19th or 20th on the grid.
If Max Verstappen wins the race without having started from pole position, it will be the 34th race which he has won from a position other than pole. That would see him overtake Alain Prost for third place on the list of most Grand Prix victories away from pole position.
If Max Verstappen leads every lap of the race, it will be the 19th race which he has led every lap of. It would see him equal Ayrton Senna for second on the list of most races led from start to finish.
A Grand Slam for Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton – winning from pole position having led every lap and set the fastest lap – would be their seventh Grand Slam. It would see them take outright second place on the list of most Grand Slams in F1, behind only Jim Clark.
A win for Lewis Hamilton would make him the 16th driver to have won Grands Prix with as many as three different teams.
A pole position for Charles Leclerc would see him equal Nigel Mansell for eighth on the list of most poles with a single team. Mansell took 28 poles with Williams during his career, while Leclerc has taken 27 poles with Ferrari to date.
A win for Ferrari would make 2025 the 60th season in which they’ve won a Grand Prix.
A victory for a Ferrari-powered car this weekend would make Ferrari the first engine manufacturer to have powered 250 victories in Formula 1. Of the 249 previous victories, Sebastian Vettel’s with Toro Rosso at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix is the only one which was not taken in a Ferrari chassis.
THE QATAR GRAND PRIX RECORDS ON OFFER
Max Verstappen holds the record for most victories at the Qatar Grand Prix, with two wins. He could extend the record at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, or Lewis Hamilton could equal the existing record. Any other driver winning would make them the third driver to take victory at Lusail Circuit.
Red Bull lead the way for most team wins in Qatar, with two. Their record could be equalled at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix by Mercedes.
Max Verstappen has finished on the podium in all three races to date at Lusail Circuit. He could extend the record to four podiums at the track in the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, or his record could be equalled by Oscar Piastri.
Red Bull and McLaren are tied as the teams with the most podiums in Qatar, with three apiece. Either team could set a new outright record in the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, while the existing record could be equalled by Alpine, Ferrari or Mercedes.
Lando Norris could equal Max Verstappen as the driver with the most fastest laps at the Qatar Grand Prix. Verstappen could extend the record to three. Meanwhile, McLaren could equal Red Bull as the team with the most fastest laps here.
Lewis Hamilton could equal Max Verstappen’s record of most Grand Prix laps led at Lusail Circuit in the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix – but only if he leads every lap of the race. Hamilton and Verstappen are the only drivers to have led a lap in a Grand Prix here.
Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen are the only drivers who’ve completed every Grand Prix lap to date at Lusail Circuit. They’ll each be hoping to maintain their 100% completion records in the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix.
Britain could equal the Netherlands as the nation with the most wins at the Qatar Grand Prix. Meanwhile, Britain or Australia could equal or overtake the Netherlands’ record tally of three podium finishes at the track. Spain could also equal the existing record.
A points finish for Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso, Lando Norris or Max Verstappen would make them the first driver to score points in four Grands Prix at Lusail Circuit.
Charles Leclerc, Fernando Alonso, George Russell, Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda will be hoping to be the first drivers to finish four Grands Prix at Lusail Circuit, while Leclerc, Alonso, Norris, Verstappen and Oscar Piastri will be hoping to keep their 100% points rates alive.
No driver has recorded more than one retirement at Lusail Circuit but Carlos Sainz, Esteban Ocon, Lance Stroll, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Hulkenberg could become the first drivers with multiple DNFs at the track in the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix. A first lap DNF for Hamilton or Ocon would make them the first to record multiple first lap retirements here, while Ocon, Stroll and Hulkenberg can become the first drivers to record consecutive DNFs at the circuit.
2025 QATAR GRAND PRIX: QUALIFYING RECORDS
No driver has taken multiple pole positions at the Qatar Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and George Russell could become the first driver to record two pole positions at Lusail Circuit. Any other driver taking pole would make them the fourth different polesitter in four races at the track.
Mercedes hold the record for the team with the most poles in Qatar, with two. Their record could be equalled at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix by Red Bull.
The Netherlands could equal Britain as the nation with most pole positions at the Qatar Grand Prix.
A front row lock-out for any team at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix would make them the first team to lock-out the front row at Lusail Circuit.
George Russell and Max Verstappen are tied for most front row starts in Qatar, with two each. Either driver could set a new outright record at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, while their existing tally could be equalled by Lewis Hamilton or Pierre Gasly.
Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso can become the first drivers to record four Q3 appearances at Lusail Circuit this weekend. Oscar Piastri is the only other current driver with a 100% Q3 appearance rate at the track.
Lance Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda can become the first drivers to record three Q2 exits in Qatar this weekend. They’re currently tied with Sergio Perez for the most Q2 eliminations here.
Liam Lawson is the only driver to have recorded multiple Q1 exits at Lusail Circuit. He could be the first driver to record three Q1 exits here this weekend, or his existing tally could be equalled by Lance Stroll, Esteban Ocon, Alex Albon and Nico Hulkenberg.
LONGEVITY RECORDS ON OFFER FOR HAMILTON AND ALONSO
A win for Lewis Hamilton would see him move into the top ten of Formula 1’s oldest Grand Prix winners. He’d also become the second-oldest British driver to win a Formula 1 race, behind only Nigel Mansell.
A victory for Fernando Alonso would make him the sport’s fifth oldest winner – and the oldest since Juan Manuel Fangio at the 1957 German Grand Prix. Only nine drivers have won races at the age of over 40. The most recent driver to do so was Nigel Mansell, at the 1994 Australian Grand Prix.
A pole position for Lewis Hamilton in 2025 would make him the first driver in his 40s to take pole position since Nigel Mansell at the 1994 Australian Grand Prix. He would be the sixth driver to take a pole position above the age of 40.
A win for Fernando Alonso at any race in 2025 would see him set a new record for the longest gap between two Formula 1 victories, with his last having come at the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix. The current record is 6 years, 6 months and 28 days, set by Riccardo Patrese.
A pole position for Fernando Alonso in 2025 would make him the sport’s fourth-oldest polesitter. He would be the oldest polesitter since Jack Brabham at the 1970 Spanish Grand Prix.