Max Verstappen’s win at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, coupled with disqualifications for both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, has rocked the top of the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship standings.
Verstappen now sits just 24 points behind Norris, who remains the leader in the Drivers’ Championship race. But Verstappen has pulled level with Piastri in the standings, and remains alive in his pursuit of a fifth title.
Here is a look at the updated Drivers’ Championship standings, what changed at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, and what is on the line next weekend at the Qatar Grand Prix.
F1 Drivers’ Championship standings
Here is the updated F1 Drivers’ Championship table following the Las Vegas Grand Prix:
| Position | Driver | Team | Points | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 390 | — |
| 2 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 366 | — |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 366 | — |
| 4 | George Russell | Mercedes | 294 | — |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 226 | — |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 152 | — |
| 7 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 137 | — |
| 8 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 73 | — |
| 9 | Isack Hadjar | VCARB | 51 | +1 |
| 10 | Nico Hülkenberg | Sauber | 49 | -1 |
| 11 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Williams | 48 | +2 |
| 12 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 41 | -1 |
| 13 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 40 | -1 |
| 14 | Liam Lawson | VCARB | 36 | — |
| 16 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 32 | +1 |
| 15 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 32 | -1 |
| 17 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | 28 | — |
| 18 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 22 | — |
| 19 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | 19 | — |
| 20 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 0 | — |
| 21 | Jack Doohan | Alpine | 0 | — |
As noted at the outset, Verstappen is now tied with Piastri, and both drivers are 24 points behind Norris. Piastri remains ahead of Verstappen on the tiebreaker for now (Piastri has seven Grand Prix wins while Verstappen has six).
Norris also has seven Grand Prix wins this season.
Beyond the top three, results in Las Vegas led to some changes in the pecking order. Isack Hadjar finished sixth, one spot ahead of Nico Hülkenberg, and that moved him ahead of the Sauber driver for ninth in the standings. Carlos Sainz Jr. was qualified fifth after the disqualifications of Norris and Piastri, and he moved up two spots to 11th, jumping ahead of Oliver Bearman and Fernando Alonso.
And a ninth-place finish for Esteban Ocon pulled him even with Lance Stroll on points, but with Ocon’s fifth-place finish at the Chinese Grand Prix, the Haas driver wins the tiebreaker between the two.
What is at stake at the Qatar Grand Prix?
Next weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix is not only the penultimate race weekend of the 2025 F1 season, but it represents the final F1 Sprint weekend of the campaign.
Prior to the Las Vegas Grand Prix, there was a scenario where Norris could have clinched the title in the F1 Sprint race on Saturday. However, that scenario is now out the window.
Still, Norris could theoretically clinch his first Drivers’ Championship on Sunday.
Even if Norris were to win the F1 Sprint race in Qatar — while Piastri and Verstappen finished outside the points — he would have a 30-point lead over his two title rivals. A win in an F1 Sprint race is worth eight points. But with 50 points still available from the two remaining grands prix, he could not clinch.
But following the Qatar Grand Prix, there will be a maximum of 25 points available in the season finale to the driver who wins the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. This means that if he outscores both Piastri and Verstappen by at least two points each over the weekend in Qatar, Norris will clinch the 2025 F1 Drivers’ Championship.
The simplest way for Norris to clinch? Win both the F1 Sprint race and the Qatar Grand Prix. That would give him 33 points, and even if the same driver finished second in both, that driver would only pick up 25 points. Norris would have 423 points in this scenario, while the other driver would have 391.
If you would like to work through the various title permutations, RaceFans has a championship calculator you can use.
While that may be the cleanest way for Norris to clinch, nothing in this sport is easy.
