Friday’s Qualifying session at the Losail International Circuit saved its twists until the end, much after the end. The Losail Circuit, famous for its tricky ‘track limits’, saw multiple laps from drivers being canceled over infringements. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the McLaren duo, saw their lap times being canceled after the end of the session. This decision demoted the two drivers to lower grid positions, promoting Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton, who was P5 on the time sheets at the end of Q3, was later pushed up to P3. Norris was demoted from P2 to P10, and Piastri went from P3 to P6. he didn’t seem to be very high-spirited about his promotion. Hamilton was out-qualified by his teammate George Russell as the young Brit claimed P2. Hamilton will start the race in the second lane alongside Fernando Alonso on Sunday.

When asked if he was satisfied with qualifying, Hamilton replied, as reported by Formula1.com. “Not massively. But it’s great for the team to be on the first two rows, second and third, I think is great for the team. Difficult at the beginning of the session, but tricky conditions out there with the wind, but ultimately it was a pretty average session for me.”

Given that the Qatar GP hosts a Sprint race, the current grid positions (at the end of Q3) don’t reflect the starting positions for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Mercedes will be looking to secure a P2 and P3 in the Sprint. The McLaren boys will be out in search for the runners-up spot, and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez also might be on the charge from P13. It looks to be a stunning setup for the Sprint Race on Saturday.

Do not miss: Charles Leclerc launches a scathing rebuke on ‘sh*t’ minimum qualifying lap time rule at the Qatar GP

Sir Lewis Hamilton recounts his fond meal with the late Queen Elizabeth

GQ recently interviewed Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion was asked about his favorite dining experience. Lewis quickly recounted his meeting with the late Queen of England as his answer.

“Wow, yeah. The most memorable dinner I’ve been to was with the queen. It was a lunch, I guess, in 2012. I got this invite to come through Buckingham Palace. I was like, “Sure!” I turned up, and there were like 12 guests, and I was sat right next to her. The queen of England! Her partner was a big racing fan, and she said she watched it because he watched it. She knew everything! That was pretty cool.” Lewis mentioned this encounter earlier while on ‘The Graham Norton Show.’

Hamilton has already been awarded Knighthood and is often referred to by his official title – Sir Lewis Hamilton. The Queen was present at the first modern Grand Prix in 1950 – at Silverstone. That is enough testament to her love for our sport.

In case you missed it:

• WATCH: Lance Stroll allegedly pushed his trainer to the wall in the Aston Martin garage after Q1 elimination at Qatar GP
• Liam Lawson admits he had ZERO idea about Qatar proxy and only got to know about it from Daniel Ricciardo via FaceTime

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