Qatar Grand Prix 2025 Predictions: Title tussle reaches penultimate race

So here we are. The penultimate race of the season, as the Formula One campaign comes to a close. As Max Verstappen took the race win in Las Vegas, Lando Norris would have been satisfied with his second-place finish as he edged closer to the title. 

Then, the FIA stepped in and disqualified both McLarens for technical infringements, meaning that Verstappen drew level with Oscar Piastri on 366 points. Just 24 points separate the top three as we head to the Middle East, and below you can find my Qatar Grand Prix 2025 predictions. 

Qatar Grand Prix 2025 Odds

Verstappen is the favourite to win in Qatar, priced at 11/8 to take another win, while Norris is 15/8 to win. Piastri is 8/1 and George Russell is 12/1 to take a win, while the full odds for the Sprint race and qualifying can be found on the link above. 

Max Verstappen to win the race @ 11/8

Lando just needs to better the results of Verstappen and Piastri to secure the title heading into this race, but I cannot ignore the sheer pace of the Red Bull driver right now. The Sprint race on Saturday is obviously going to be a factor, and I think Norris is desperate to take the title away from his rivals with one race to go, but - especially after what happened last weekend, I think McLaren will go safety first with limited risk. 

Verstappen won this race last year after Oscar won the Sprint ahead of Lando, and he has now won four of the last seven races to drag himself back into contention. That form simply cannot be ignored and given Max has to be uber aggressive in order to try and put the pressure on heading into the final race of the season, I think he will get the race win. 

A second-place finish would keep Lando in control of the title heading into the final race weekend, so it’s not the worst result in the world if push comes to shove. He simply cannot afford another DNF and I believe that may stop him risking too much on the track. Max on the other hand, can risk it all, with nothing to lose.

F1 Odds

George Russell podium finish @ 1/1

Mr Consistent was bumped up to second in Las Vegas as the McLaren DQs, and the poor form of Piastri means that the door is open for him to secure a top three finish once again. I don’t fancy the Ferraris right now and I think there might be too much pressure on Piastri to pull something out of the fire. While Lando and Max are likely to occupy the top two spots, I think Mercedes would be happy if Russell can find himself on the podium once again. At EVS, I think he’s a decent price.