Sergio Perez beat teammate Max Verstappen to victory at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in another dominant one-two result for Red Bull Racing.
Pole-getter Perez’s race was almost perfect but for his tardy launch off the line that handed an early lead to second-place starter Fernando Alonso — who didn’t need to be asked twice to take the straighter line through the first chicane and take first place.
But it became quickly obvious that the Aston Martin was no match for the Red Bull Racing car. Perez bided his time until lap four, when he blasted back into the lead with the help of a super-effective DRS, and never looked back, with his way being eased by a lap-17 safety car that gifted him an easy pit stop.
Continue reading on RACERSergio Perez has taken a second straight Saudi Arabian Grand Prix pole position after teammate Max Verstappen exited qualifying in 15th with a driveshaft issue.
Verstappen was on his first flying lap of Q2 when his driveshaft suddenly let go, forcing him to limp back to pit lane, where his car couldn’t be repaired in time to rejoin the session. Red Bull had just changed the gearbox before FP3 earlier in the day.
The Dutchman won from as far back as 14th at last year’s Belgian Grand Prix. The last driver to win from 15th was Fernando Alonso at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.
Continue reading on RACERMax Verstappen beat Red Bull Racing teammate Sergio Perez to top spot in FP3 to sweep all three Saudi Arabian practice sessions ahead of qualifying tonight.
Perez had held top spot for much of the hour thanks to an early run on the soft tires, but a late blast on fresh rubber for Verstappen blew the Mexican’s best time out of the water by 0.613s with a time of 1m28.485s.
Other than requiring a new gearbox before the session, the only blot on his afternoon was a near accident with Lando Norris, who almost ran into the back of the Red Bull Racing car around a blind corner while the Verstappen slowed on a cool-down lap.
Continue reading on RACERWe put a surprisingly large number of races in the bin and begin the countdown to the day talkback radio callers start complaining about traffic around Albert Park during the grand prix.
Featuring Luke Smith from Autosport. Max Verstappen wins the first races of his title-defending season after outmanoeuvring Charles Leclerc in an enthralling battle to the chequered flag.
BWT Alpine F1 Team reserve driver Oscar Piastri joins hosts Matt Clayton and Michael Lamonato to discuss the specifics of his new role, staying physically and mentally ready in case he’s called into action (04:55), how he’s satisfying his thirst for competition without racing and the lessons he’s already learned from the team’s race drivers, Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon.
Max Verstappen pinched victory from Charles Leclerc in a tense conclusion to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Dutchman launched his bid for victory late, with Leclerc having controlled most of the race until the final 10 laps.
Leclerc inherited the lead from poleman and erstwhile leader Sergio Perez, who had been managing the pace until his first pit stop, on lap 15.
Continue reading on RACERSergio Perez has taken his first F1 pole position in an elongated qualifying session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after a major crash for Mick Schumacher delayed the completion of Q2.
Schumacher ran deep onto the curb at Turn 10 which unsettled his car and spun it backwards in a shower of sparks. It slammed sideways into the concrete barrier at the exit of Turn 11, ripping both right-hand wheels from the chassis, and was catapulted further down the track, eventually coming to rest at Turn 12.
The German was reported to be conscious and talking but had to be extricated from the car by the medical team, after which he was transported by ambulance to the medical center. Haas said afterwards that he appeared physically fine but would be airlifted to hospital for precautionary checks.
Continue reading on RACERCharles Leclerc completed a sweep of practice sessions at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, once again leading Max Verstappen.
The Monegasque improved his time at the last moment with blistering pace through the first sector before losing time to the Dutchman over the balance of the lap to edge the Red Bull Racing car by just 0.033s.
But Verstappen will feel comfortable knowing there was more pace in his car but for a mistake on his last flying lap that sent him clattering over the curbs at Turn 22.
Continue reading on RACERCharles Leclerc set the fastest time of second practice of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix… shortly before crashing out of the session.
Leclerc set the hour session’s quickest time despite encountering traffic in the final sector, which prevented him from setting even a personal best time at the split. Regardless, his lap of 1m30.074s went unbeaten through the hour, with Max Verstappen slipping into second and 0.140s off the pace.
But after switching to long-run simulation Leclerc made moderate contact with the barrier at the apex of Turn 4 and broke his left steering arm. He was able to crawl back to pit lane, but his session was over.
Continue reading on RACERharles Leclerc beat Max Verstappen to the top spot of the late-afternoon opening practice session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Ferrari driver took top spot on the second push lap of a new set of soft tires as the session clock expired, pipping Verstappen by 0.116s — though the Dutchman used a set of hard tires for his best lap, distorting the gap.
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is run at night, so track conditions during first and third practice in the afternoon are not representative of qualifying and the race. The track surface was also very dusty at the beginning of the session, particularly off line and in the pit lane, and drivers struggled with gusty conditions around the seaside circuit.
Continue reading on RACERYou simply couldn’t write it. After 21 rounds Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton are tied on points and brimming with animosity after a dynamite inaugural grand prix in Saudi Arabia, and it’s anyone’s guess who’s going to leave Abu Dhabi with the championship this weekend.
It’s all happening in F1. The championship race is going down to the wire between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. Formula 1 expert Michael Lamonato joins us.
Down to the wire. Lewis Hamilton wins in Saudi Arabia to level the scores and set up a do-or-die championship showdown Max Verstappen. With Phil Horton from Auto Week.
Read the full 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix strategy analysis here.
David Coulthard, 13-time grand prix winner and two-time victor in Melbourne, joins us to talk about the chaotic first Saudi Arabian Grand Prix that set up a winner-takes-all showdown between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi and reflects on his time as teammate to the retiring Kimi Raikkonen and driving for the late Sir Frank Williams.
The title goes down to the wire at all-time classic F1 venue Abu Dhabi, everyone forgets about Esteban Ocon and Rob’s patron saint of trucking finally delivers him a win.
Michael Lamonato joined Matt Grubelich on Sports Drive to share his analysis on all the thrills and spills from the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was always going to be memorable for setting the scene for the last race of the season, but a chaotic inaugural event in Jeddah delivered plenty of its own highlights.