F1 Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying: Winners and Losers

The 2025 F1 Abu Dhabi GP was a thrilling affair as we saw Max Verstappen secure pole position for the title decider. The Red Bull driver will have Lando Norris alongside him on the front row and the third title contender, Oscar Piastri, in P3.

The final qualifying session was not only intense, but it was also as close as it gets for an 82-second lap. As the teams get ready for the final race of the season, how many would be happy with how the F1 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying went, and how many would be a bit disappointed? Let's take a look.

F1 Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying

Winner

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen is doing exactly what is required of him. That pole lap, both of them, were sensational, and he showed once again that all he needs is a competitive car and he gets the job done. He's in the perfect position now for the F1 Abu Dhabi GP, and we might see something similar to what Lewis Hamilton did in 2016.

Loser

Lewis Hamilton

It's the final qualifying session of the season, and all you want to do is nail it before you go into the winter. Lewis Hamilton was unable to accomplish that as he picked up another notorious accolade as a Ferrari driver. The driver was knocked out in Q1 for the third time in a row, capping off what has been a horrible season for him.

Winner

Lando Norris

Lando Norris has more or less done what he needs to do to keep himself in the championship battle. A front-row start is good for him, but a lot would depend on how the driver navigates what is possibly going to be a lot of pressure throughout the race.

Max Verstappen is not going to make it easy for the McLaren driver, but for now, he's in a safe place.

Loser

Kimi Antonelli

Just like Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Antonelli would have hoped for a better run in his final qualifying of the season. The young Italian, however, has shown that he has enough pace in the car to make progress during the race. It would be interesting to see what he can accomplish during the F1 Abu Dhabi GP.

Winner

Esteban Ocon

Esteban Ocon has been under the pump in the second half of the season as his teammate Ollie Bearman has just grown from strength to strength. For the F1 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying, the French driver put his head down and executed what was an impressive turnaround from the driver.

He'll start from P8 ahead of his teammate after seemingly not having the pace of Bearman throughout the weekend.

Loser

Nico Hulkenberg and Ollie Bearman

If we look at the timesheets from different practice sessions, the names that stand out the most are Ollie Bearman and Nico Hulkenberg. Neither were, however, able to nail their qualifying laps and would start from somewhat compromised positions in the race.

Both would be hoping to make progress in the F1 Abu Dhabi GP, but we could potentially be looking at a less-than-ideal race weekend for both.