Where there’s life, there’s hope—a sentiment Oscar Piastri is clinging to as he keeps his Formula 1 championship dreams alive by clinching the pole position for the Qatar Sprint race. This achievement injects fresh energy into his campaign, which has seen its fair share of ups and downs.

The Australian driver once led the 2025 Formula One championship standings through the European circuits, maintaining his lead into the early days of September. However, his fortunes took a dramatic turn on September 7 at Monza. It was there that Piastri last stepped onto the podium, marking the beginning of a challenging period for him.

Meanwhile, Lando Norris seized the opportunity to shift the momentum in his favor. His victories in both the Sprint and Grand Prix during that weekend allowed him to create a substantial lead in the points tally.

Piastri desperately needed a comeback in Las Vegas on November 22-23. Unfortunately, McLaren faced a significant setback when both their cars were disqualified due to excessive plank wear, dashing their hopes for a strong performance.

Piastri needed a strong rebound in Las Vegas on November 22-23, but McLaren’s hopes collapsed when both cars were disqualified for excessive plank wear. 

Australia’s Oscar Piastri has earned pole position in the Qatar Sprint race to remain in contention for the F1 championship

Piastri’s McLaren teammate Lando Norris is in a commanding position and is favourite to win the title

Before the disqualification, Piastri had finished fourth, a result that would have kept him in realistic contention. 

Max Verstappen inherited the win on November 23, tightening the standings and dropping Piastri behind on countback. 

With only Qatar on November 30 and Abu Dhabi December 7 remaining, Piastri now trails both Norris and Verstappen. 

He enters the Middle East double-header with only a mathematical chance, needing perfect results and major errors from both rivals. 

What was shaping as a breakthrough title year has instead become a late-season fight for survival. 

However the gate has remained open a crack, with Piastri earning pole position for the Qatar Sprint race. 

While there are only seven championship points on offer for the winner, it would keep him contention heading into the the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Piastri can still win the championship, but every scenario now depends on him beating Norris across both the Sprint and the Grand Prix in Qatar. 

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is tied on championship points with Piastri and also remains a mathematical chance at winning the title

If Norris outscores him by two points or more this weekend, Piastri’s title hopes end on the spot, no matter what happens in Abu Dhabi. 

A win for Norris in the Grand Prix would effectively finish the job unless Piastri wins the race himself or finishes ahead of him in both sessions. 

A strong Sprint result helps Piastri, but it only matters if he also gets the job done on Sunday. 

The simplest way for him to stay alive is to finish ahead of Norris in both the Sprint and the Grand Prix, which guarantees the fight continues to the finale. 

His best lifeline is winning the Qatar Grand Prix while Norris finishes outside the top two, a combination that would slash the 24-point gap and keep the pressure on. 

If Piastri wins and Norris fails to score in the Sprint, the Australian’s chances brighten considerably heading into Abu Dhabi. 

Verstappen’s presence complicates things further, because Piastri must also stay ahead of him to avoid dropping behind two rivals. 

The only scenario that guarantees Piastri’s survival regardless of Sprint points is winning Sunday’s Grand Prix, which mathematically keeps him alive. 

To actually claim the championship, he will need a near-perfect Abu Dhabi weekend – most likely a win – and for Norris to slip far enough that Piastri can overturn what remains of the deficit.

For now, Piastri says ‘It’s nice to be back.’

‘[It was] a day when things clicked.’