Max Verstappen claimed his first pole position at Jeddah today which felt like a bit of redemption after “the lap that never was” a few years ago that surely would’ve seen Verstappen set the lap record. His blistering 1m 27.472s lap sent him 3 tenths clear of Charles Leclerc who also had a late charge in Q3 to take P2. In third came Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.
Fernando Alonso also put his name in the mix finishing qualifying with a best lap a mere 0.046s slower than Sergio Perez. Aston Martin displayed formidable pace in Q3. On paper this could see Fernando Alonso into podium contention. Jeddah is a track known for its tight, high speed corners. Jeddah is one of the least forgiving circuits on the Formula 1 schedule leaving almost no margin for error. Aston Martin is looking to bounce back after a disappointing first round of the season saw them fall behind substantially in pace to the McLarens. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris finished P5 and P6 respectively in Q3. It would be a mistake to write them off for podium contention.
Substitute Ferrari Driver Oliver Bearman Falls Short in Q2 but Shows Promise
Oliver Bearman got the call this weekend that Carlos Sainz would not be able to continue the race weekend due to a diagnosis of appendicitis. Bearman had limited time to get acquianted with the data gathered thus far and had to put it into practice ahead of qualifying. Bearmen successfully made it out of Q1 but fell just short in Q2; finish P11 overall. Bearman was excited about the opportunity to step up.
“It’s been a great day but it could have been even better. It wasn’t the ideal way of making my F1 debut and of course I send all my best wishes to Carlos for a speedy recovery. But it’s a great opportunity nevertheless. I would have liked to have come to [qualifying] with more than the 22 laps I did in FP3. But I can still be happy with today, even if Q2 was a bit messy. It was so close, but I made a mistake on my first push lap, so I had to do a second one and by then the tires were no longer at their best. Now I’m ready to make the most of this opportunity tomorrow. I will focus on bringing the car home, although points would be nice. But it’s my first race on a really difficult track, so I can’t expect too much.”
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix kicks off tomorrow.
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Qualifying Results
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Car | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
|---|
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | 1:28.171 | 1:28.033 | 1:27.472 |
| 2 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | FERRARI | 1:28.318 | 1:28.112 | 1:27.791 |
| 3 | 11 | Sergio Perez | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | 1:28.638 | 1:28.467 | 1:27.807 |
| 4 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | 1:28.706 | 1:28.122 | 1:27.846 |
| 5 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 1:28.755 | 1:28.343 | 1:28.089 |
| 6 | 4 | Lando Norris | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 1:28.805 | 1:28.479 | 1:28.132 |
| 7 | 63 | George Russell | MERCEDES | 1:28.749 | 1:28.448 | 1:28.316 |
| 8 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | MERCEDES | 1:28.994 | 1:28.606 | 1:28.460 |
| 9 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB HONDA RBPT | 1:28.988 | 1:28.564 | 1:28.547 |
| 10 | 18 | Lance Stroll | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | 1:28.250 | 1:28.578 | 1:28.572 |
| 11 | 38 | Oliver Bearman | FERRARI | 1:28.984 | 1:28.642 | |
| 12 | 23 | Alexander Albon | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 1:29.107 | 1:28.980 | |
| 13 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | HAAS FERRARI | 1:29.069 | 1:29.020 | |
| 14 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB HONDA RBPT | 1:29.065 | 1:29.025 | |
| 15 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | HAAS FERRARI | 1:29.055 | DNF | |
| 16 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | 1:29.179 | | |
| 17 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | ALPINE RENAULT | 1:29.475 | | |
| 18 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | ALPINE RENAULT | 1:29.479 | | |
| 19 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 1:29.526 | | |
| NC | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | DNF | | |