The FIA were very good with the tyre situation. It was a good decision, you have to make a clear decision and they did.
That was a big change compared to Indianapolis back in 2005 when they didn't make a decision and the Michelin drivers couldn't compete.
But then the track limits were very bad, I can't agree with them at the moment.
The drivers almost passed out - or did at some points - and couldn't see the white lines. You can say it is fair for all because the rule applies to everyone, but the situation was not like that.
Common sense has to take over, something has to be done about that in the future. The rule is now starting to interfere with the racing and that is not what it is supposed to do.
There was no advantage to be gained this time and considering the hard conditions, track limits were the last thing drivers should have to think about, getting one inch too far over the line.
The rule only has to be used if you really gain an advantage when crossing the track limits, otherwise, it doesn't make sense and it is affecting the racing.
Viewed by others:
What was Hamilton thinking?
Saturday's Sprint, with safety cars, had fantastic racing and Oscar Piastri is going to be a star, no question about it.
Verstappen's success is well deserved and it is going to be difficult to beat him next year and in 2025, when you consider what he and Red Bull can deliver.
Sergio is in such a fast car but he can't get the best out of it. He really has to pick the pace up because next year, Red Bull won't go with a driver that doesn't perform.
It was a fantastic race result again for McLaren - they are knocking on the door and there are enough races left to chase down second in the standings by the end of the season, if they can keep the momentum because they are a pretty serious challenge.
A bad weekend for Mercedes, I don't know what Hamilton was thinking. He has all the room in the world and he could have ended up in first after the first or second corner. Verstappen was very lucky not to be hit out of the race.
Hamilton claimed responsibility, so that was good but they could have scored a lot of points in the race for second because Ferrari was nowhere.
Close battle at bottom proves budget cap working
Down the order, it was a bad weekend for Stroll. He must be questioning his position in F1 and it is quite sad to see.
AlphaTauri is struggling in what has been a really hard season and going out like this would be very sad for Franz Tost [Team Principal, who retires at the end of the year].
It's an interesting fight down the bottom of the Constructors' championship, where sometimes teams are performing really well and then slipping back again or doing it like Williams, with only one driver scoring the points.
It's a tough battle there but another point of strength for the FIA, because it proves the budget cap is working.
The famous RN365 calendar download is back! Add the 2025 F1 calendar to your schedule with one click and don't miss a second of the new F1 season.
Download the F1 calendarMost read
In this article
F1 2023 Qatar Grand Prix RN365 News dossier
Join the conversation!
Feersumenjin
So in fact you do know what Hamilton was thinking "Verstappen was very lucky not to be hit out of the race." That sums it up, a moment of greedy opportunism that may have worked in his favour and if not then would possibly result in a George/Max collision that would leave at least one Merc in the lead with no competition save McLaren in the picture. In the shoes given at the time I probably would have done the over eager move myself and prayed for divine intervention to make it work. But I am an amateur, Lewis is not. Is this a telltale that the lack of competitiveness of the car is slowly grinding away at him? The McLaren thing now seems to be a verified fact other than the anomaly some teams thought it to be. imagine if they can now have the leeway to address the irksome behaviours of the car that Norris has been complaining about forever. That said, given Oscar's stellar trajectory with a "Wierd do drive car" I cannot help but go back and wonder what the hell was actually really going on with Ricciardo? Something just does not jive here. Sainz... right about now he must be pondering why he left McLaren to dive into the pit of despair known as Ferrari. Man I feel for the guy, he deserves better by far.