Max Verstappen secured the top spot at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, starting from pole position and serving as a testament to Red Bull’s formidable performance in the current Formula One season. His fellow team member, former champion Sergio Perez from Mexico, bagged the second position as the Jeddah Corniche floodlights brightly shone on. Despite being the last year’s champion, Perez finished about 14 seconds behind his triple-world-champion colleague.
Remarkably, Verstappen had never won the first two races of any season before, even though he holds a record of winning 19 out of 22 races last year. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc from Ferrari managed to secure the third position; this was his first podium finish of the season and he also bagged the extra points for the fastest lap.
Verstappen’s success streak extended to his 9th consecutive win since last September in Japan, and it was the 56th of his professional career. The 26-year-old Dutch racer also celebrated his 100th podium finish, while this was the 115th victory for Red Bull, putting them past Williams in fourth place on the historical leader board. Verstappen praised both his team and his performance over the weekend, asserting how comfortable he felt in the car.
The EU’s Oliver Bearman, only 18 years-old and 305 days, made his mark in F1 racing with Ferrari, replacing Spaniard Carlos Sainz who was out due to appendicitis. He finished in the seventh position and was voted the Driver of the Day. Leclerc expressed his admiration for the young talent, predicting a promising future for him in F1.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, and Mercedes’ George Russell bagged the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions respectively. The latter was followed by three more British racers, with McLaren’s Lando Norris, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton for Mercedes, and Nico Hulkenberg for Haas completing the top ten.
On the seventh lap, the safety car was deployed due to Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll crashing into a wall and then into the barriers at the 22nd turn. Though no harm was done to the Canadian, all drivers but Norris, Hamilton, and two others took the opportunity to head for the pits.
Norris, who was later exonerated from a presumed false start, took control when the Aston Martin Vantage safety car went back to the pit after nine laps. However, by lap 13, Verstappen had reclaimed the lead and was extending his advantage. Perez incurred a five-second penalty due to unsafe departure following his initial pit stop, while Haas’s Kevin Magnussen was penalised ten seconds for instigating a collision with Alex Albon of Williams.
Magnussen, the Dane, was subsequently given an additional 10-second penalty for exiting the track and securing an advantage. Yet, his primary function was to establish a sufficient distance behind Hulkenberg, thus enabling the German to pit but also finish with a crucial point.
Pierre Gasly of Alpine was instructed to pit and halt during the first lap due to a potential gearbox problem, thus becoming the first withdrawal of the season, following the completion of all 20 cars in the inaugural race in Bahrain a week prior.
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