The Qatar Grand Prix witnessed early chaos, with Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly involved in an incident.
The collision, which triggered a barrage of pit stops, occurred when Hulkenberg attempted an overtake on the Alpine driver.
The 38-year-old, who appeared to be sweeping past Gasly on the seventh lap, had his rear-right tyre make contact with the front-right of the Alpine. The safety car period spiralled into a pit stop frenzy for everyone, with Max Verstappen one of the first drivers to dive into the pits.
Pierre Gasly made contact with Nico Hulkenberg at the Qatar Grand Prix – Photo: Race Pictures
However, the McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who are both locked in a title fight with the Red Bull driver, opted to stay out.
Verstappen makes massive lap-one move on Norris
On the opening lap of the race, Verstappen kept his title hopes alive with a bold move, overtaking the McLaren of Norris heading into Turn One.
Earlier, Verstappen had promised an all-out attack in his reaction ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix.
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